Pork Chop In A Glove

Last time we chatted, I told you about both the Plymouth County and Iowa State Fairs. Please don’t let me misrepresent my state. These are not the only 2 fairs that take place in the state of Iowa. There are nearly 100 county fairs held as the precursor to the piece de resistance of all Iowa fairs….the Iowa State Fair, a 11-day “festivus” held in August featuring foods-on-a-stick, midway rides and games, fair queens and kings, and freakishly large veggies and livestock. (I have included photos of the Superbull and Superboar who, respectively, weighed in at 3,012 lbs and 1,259 lbs!!)

While the Iowa State Fair is the climax of summer, I need to share with you one of my favorite things at my own county fair, The Plymouth County Fair, held just two weeks before the State Fair in Des Moines.

Each year, I brave the heat and the dust to plunk down a small fortune at the midway for me to anxiously watch my two precious and beautiful children as they climb aboard rusted-out, ill-maintained carnival rides assembled by 18-25 year olds who, I am almost certain, have never attended a single mechanical engineering class. I also sit for hours in the late-afternoon sun on hard wooden bleachers to hold my family’s spot for the Demolition Derby. I have stepped in cow-poo, been sneezed on by a sheep, and had the hem of my shorts dined upon by an enthusiastic goat. But, it is all worth it for me when I am able to enjoy the singularly most enjoyable highlight for me: the “Pork Chop in a Glove”.

There is no mistake as to what this menu item offers. You are handed a heat-resistant orange and white glove in which a big, fat, juicy, just-off-the-grill pork chop is placed. OMG! Nothing on the planet beats this experience.

However, this year, due to the sheer popularity of this novelty entrée, I was forced to eat my pork chop from a bag, as all the gloves had been sold out prior to my arrival at the Plymouth County Pork Producers’ concession stand. A sad reminder to me that I need to remember to get my ‘Pork Chop In a Glove” on the first day of the Plymouth County Fair

….or maybe next year, I will bring my own glove.

Until next time, I remain….1SweetMama