Last Saturday, Hilo was the most happening little town!  The 23rd Annual KWXX Ho`olaule`a wowed everyone in attendance, as usual, despite being scheduled for the same weekend as the 66th annual Hawai`i County Fair put on by the Hilo Jaycees.

Which is where I spent a fun late morning / early Saturday afternoon with Cullen.  He, now more than his brothers, looks forward to the fair every year.

Cullen wasn’t a fan for years until Xave convinced him to try the Pharaoh’s Fury. That was it.  He was hooked.  Nothing else mattered and he was completely enthralled with the movement of the ride.  He added a second ride to his carnival riding repertoire which makes for a lot more fun times. 

I dug out Cullen’s old sneakers so I wouldn’t have to worry about cleaning his newer ones later.  I frantically looked for my old ones but couldn’t find them.  I surrendered to the moment, dug deep into my local upbringing, and put on rubber slippers.  I reassured myself that I won’t have to clean any shoes later. 

When we got there, I remembered the entire area is paved now.  Awesome!  No more muddy shoes, black hanabata, or intensely grimy hair.  Switching things up by going soon after it opened helped to secure a paved parking spot, too.  Not to mention a significantly less amount of people to get through.  Meaning NO LINES!

Thirty dollars worth of ride coupons – I mean Fun Pass credits – and done.  We didn’t get to eat there but, more importantly, we were fortunate to use a family pass for entry.  (Mahalo Jaycees!)  I cannot complain.

Cullen is already looking forward to next year.  Maybe he’ll try a new ride or maybe he’ll be willing to share a seat with a friend. He hasn’t done so in a really long time. Next time I’ll remember about the pavement and we’ll both feel totally comfortable wearing rubber slippers.