There goes August, got a bandana with lunch on a stick, and is headed down the road. Hopes never to return and is looking to join the circus.

I have no doubts that I’ll see August again. August will then be an older August, more wise to the ways of the world. August is also wise to bow out before winter – September sometimes manages to do the same, but August always gets away free and clear.

Becky's Train

And what will I remember about August 2024? That it was a month in which I first started preparing for the fair. We took Hrimmi in the Alaska State Fair Parade, and after that the fun began. I began packing up books, which we placed in newspaper boxes, when we were on site, and preparing for Story Time.

Pete and I began refining our distribution methods a few days into the fair. We first started working out of cardboard boxes but then began using covered bins. We filled the bins at the hotel with books that were in those cardboard boxes. We ended up having ten boxes total: one for each of the ten newspaper boxes.

Story time. A bust because I didn’t put enough time into organizing the volunteers or making fliers for parents. The site was also not the best. It was a cabin on a straight thoroughfare – it was hard to get the attention of the parents or children as they rushed to their next destination.

An alternative to story time did emerge. I began passing out books at the Red Gate entrance. This worked very well. This was adjacent to a children’s play area, so the addition of a newspaper box made even more books accessible to them. We also had time to talk with several parents about reading.

I had this idea, which also worked well. I began passing out Dr. Suess books and wore a Dr. Suess hat. The branding, with an author that the parents were familiar with worked.

After distributing books, I joined Pete and we went and with wagons collecting recyclables. This of course added to an already long day. This evening, after the Monster Truck Demonstration, Pete and I, with wagons in hand, went to empty the green recyclable barrels where the Monster Truck event was going on.

This turned out to be a real eye opener. The green barrels were partially full of garbage. And the red barrels were partially filled with cans. It made for a longer evening than expected.

I figured out what was going on. The two barrels contained garbage and cans mixed because the people who frequent such events are unable to figure out what goes where. These are the individuals who should know better.

After returning to the Alaska State Fair recycling area, a woman who’d been out on a run with her father played the fiddle for Pete, me, and the other workers. On Monday, at 4:00 p.m. she’s going to compete in Alaska’s got talent. Imagine that.

Next: 237. 9/1/24: September