This week’s Throwback Thursday takes us back to August 1999. My grandpa had visited us in Boston and then we brought him back to New York. It was the week of the Dutchess County Fair and Grandpa wanted to take us to it and give Paxton his first fair experience. I loved this idea because I had gone to this fair with Grandpa every year of my life until age 22 and I wanted to see him share it with his great grandson. I only took 3 pictures that day (I was using a film camera), but this is the one that sticks in my mind. I love it. Grandpa had Paxton at his favorite game on the midway. When I was a kid, we spent a lot of time at this game. Grandpa always brought a roll of quarters just for this game and he would let me choose what color to put the quarter on (I always chose purple or one of those multi color patterns). I don’t recall him ever actually winning this game, but he still played it year after year. Over the years, I sometimes went to this fair with my cousins, my brother, and various friends, but always with Grandpa. I chose this photo for this week because, like it always has been, both the Dutchess County Fair and Grandpa’s birthday were this week. Although I miss Grandpa always, this week in August always has me missing him even more.
