The Strange Things We Do
I’m going to admit something I probably shouldn’t. I love small town festivals and my very favorite is the Opp Rattlesnake Rodeo in Opp, Alabama. Yep, a festival dedicated to rattlesnakes. Quite odd, but certainly enjoyable. Now, it’s not the rattlesnakes that I enjoy – it’s the arts and crafts, food, music, and other activities that encourage me to make the trip back home the first weekend of April every year. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to attend this year due to prior commitments and I’m extremely disappointed since it’s the festival’s 50th Anniversary.
Growing up in Opp, attendance was almost a rite of passage. There are pageants to crown a Rattlesnake queen, snake races (seriously – I’m not kidding), buck dancing contests and huge concerts both nights of the festival. It’s quite the event.
Sadly, I must admit that the thing I’ll probably miss most are the funnel cakes. Since I’ve admitted my deep, dark secret, I hope that someone else will admit to enjoying the local flair of festivals near them too!
AAR Heather
Thank you very much for your blog! It is very important to me. Original content.
The Owensboro Barbeque festival is lots of fun. The town is barbeque obsessed and the meat of choice is mutton. I read somewhere, that most of the mutton in the USA is eaten in Owensboro and the surrounding area.
Ironically, I was posting on another site just last night about the Sweetwater, Texas, Rattlesnake Roundup to be held this coming weekend—the world’s largest! Like you, Heather, I’m not crazy about the snakes themselves, but love the chance to eat rattlesnake chili, steak, fritters, etc., and to see the variety of things made from rattlesnakes.
I am a festival hound. Love ‘em! Among the Texas festivals I attend pretty much annually are the Scarecrow Festival in Chappell Hill (yes, there is a scarecrow contest), the Bluebonnet Festival also in Chappell Hill (when the fields are painted with flowers bluer than the sky), the twice-yearly Antiques Festival in Round Top, and the Renaissance Festival in Plantersville (an experience no one should miss and even more fun if you dress the part.) Then there are the rodeos, which often have many of the same attractions and vendors as the festivals. Loved the one I attended this past weekend—wild cow milking should become a new Olympic sport!
Ah, yes, strolling down a small town street drinking too much draft beer and sneaking tufts of cotton candy from your child while perusing booth after booth of jewelry, clothing, and art—festivals are one of life’s simple pleasures.