Every year we make it into downtown Memphis to wander through four floors of agricultural booths containing absolutely every thing related to cotton, and then some! This year we made it again. Our kids still want to climb onto the tractors, combines, spray rigs, cotton pickers, etc etc and search for the horns. Generally you can score at least one or more yard sticks (almost meter rulers), pencils, pens, caps, flashlights, bottle openers etc etc with the most diverse range of company names on them. The highlight for the kids of course is the candy that people have in their booths. It is there to lure in the prospective farmers to investigate and then purchase their wares... however, knowing that the kid taking the candy may be a prospective client's kid, they are generally always encouraging to the kids, "go ahead, take a handfull." with the mums in the background saying "one or two that's all..." Some stalls give out cokes, and every year you can be sure of a cup of icecream from one of the stalls.
The people watching is half the fun. There are those dressed in tie and suits, those who it looks like just hopped off the tractor, the 4H kids, the school expedition kids, the homeschooled kids.....
All in all we had a good time, the prize for the best T-shirt of the day goes to this fellow we passed near the tractors....
I have zoomed in on the shirt to protect him from his wife (or tractor dealer)....
Aussie Kim
For our Australian, non cotton grower, readers, Gin means cotton gin. Hence this show was originally just for cotton ginners, but is now actually called The Mid South Farm and Gin Show.
Posted by: Aussie Kim | March 02, 2008 at 07:07 AM