Document text
A day spent at the fair: A little bit of this, a little bit of tat Pink pigs snore in their sleep, grunting periodically at the happy thought of their next meal. Or it could be their squiggly snouts are smelling the aroma of popcorn, roasted corn on the cob and cotton candy wafting on the summer breeze at the Jackson County Fair. Carnival rides whirl and twirl. Barkers bark. Local radio stations broadcast on site, vibrating the air with a clash of oldies and western. A young Marine Corps recruiter beckons with a gung-ho smile. Been there, done that. The Padgham Pavilion is the place to go for a little reflection amid the shining jars of homemade jams and jellies. Indeed, it is among the preserves, quilts and tatting that the traditional country fair is, well, preserved. "This is far better than anything you can buy," observes Ora Corliss, superintendent of the exhibits and a third-generation fairgoer, nodding toward the baked and canned goods on display. "I still do my own canning - pickles, relishes, catsups, fruits," says Corliss, born in Klamath County more than 70 years ago. She looks as fresh as the nearby canned peaches. Those homemade goodies fueled her now-grown children, all graduates of Crater High School, through local 4-H and FFA programs at the county fair. Her grandchildren are also fair veterans. "I started in 4-H back in '33," she says. She is now a food judge at the Josephine County Fair as well as the Oregon State Fair. She knows how a pickle ought to crunch, how a jelly ought to stand on its own, how bread ought to be slightly moist. And she knows her canned fruit like nobody's business. "First you look to see if the jar is clean," she explains. "Then you make sure there is a uniform pack, and that the juice is clear. Then you check the flavor." That hasn't changed over the years, she says. What has changed is that more folks are interested in homemade wares. Folks like Kathy Mason. She won the most ribbons in baked goods and food preservation, receiving 149 ribbons this year. Yep, she used Mason jars. Jill Marie Wilson, a teenager from Central Point, was the champion cake decorator with her white doll cake. "We've had little fingers decorating it all week," says a smiling Corliss as she points out tiny pinkie indentions left by urchins. Shady Cove residents John and Sandra Thompson and their four young girls - all cute as a bug's ear - stop by to check out the "Mom and me" cookie exhibit. Sandra and three of the oldest siblings entered this year. "That's mine," says Heather, age 6. "Um, those are my sugar cookies." All three cookies are sprinkled with green and red sugar. They look edible. Did she sample any? "Yep, all of 'em," she says, giggling. Morgan, 7, points to the peanut butter cookies she made. "They're good," she says. John holds Taelor, 3, who holds up three digits - none of which has any traces of cake frosting - to indicate her age. Taelor made no-bake cookies. "They were kind of lumpy," her father admits. Samantha, the one-and-a-half-year-old in the walker, didn't enter this year. Maybe next year. Nor did her father, although he offered his family's antique tea set for an exhibit which garnered his wife a blue ribbon. "It was so neat when we all baked together," Sandra says. "We went out into the garden to get the dried herbs. We had fun." Sandra brought home 26 ribbons. "And this was my first fair," she says. The quilting and tatting exhibits would get a firm nod of approval from my grandmother. Tatting is lacework made by looping and knotting. Two championship ribbons for tatting went to Art Ricketts, 69, of Medford. The man who makes doilies is a beefy fellow who is a retired government contract manager from what is now the Boeing Co. About 20 years ago, he told his wife, Areta, that he wanted to learn how to tat. She promptly bought him a shuttle and a tatting book. "It's a restful thing," he says. "When my wife goes shopping, I'll sit in the car and tat." He's working on a large centerpiece he hopes to have done by next year's fair. "The hardest part is learning how to turn the knots," he says. For the last six years, he has won first place at the state fair for his tatting. "I have a son that has taken first place in tatting several times at the California State Fair," he says. "He's about 265 pounds. He's a police sergeant." Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.