Meet Me At The Rocket !

Here we are blocking the entrance to the S.C. State Fair Grounds in Columbia, SC. The Fair Grounds are used to accommodate the massive parking needs of Carolina fans. Some seasons you could park pretty close to the stadium, but in recent years they've done a little better. Unless you're plugged into some high cotton these days, you're pretty much parking with the pickers.

They have the biggest and best fair in the state each year. They still judge cattle and canned goods, quilts and corn, pies and photography. The rides were great, the food was rich and the beer went well with everything except cotton candy. The fair draws people from a wider radius from Columbia than anything other than Carolina football. Many features draw folks to the fair, but nothing unites them more than it's central feature: "The Rocket", that which seems to have grown out of our roof in the photo.

It appears to us be more of a missile, but " rocket " has a nicer, more friendly sound. Rockets send up satellites which tell our GPS gizmos how to tell us how to get from Five Points to the Statehouse ( Windveil has, but a hand held compass). Rockets send up our Astronauts and made Tang what it is today. " Missile " has that troublesome suggestion of war. Most kids now think that silos are hiding places missiles rather than grain. When we hear "MISSILE " we always think " CRISIS ". When we hear " rocket " we think of New Year's Eve or Daddy's old Rocket 88 Oldsmobile.

Over the PA system lost children are coaxed to the Rocket to be claimed. Game fans who can't find their cars can at least gather at the Rocket. Couples have even got married under the Rocket. The " Missile " we feared would change life as we know it. Some of those who got married under the rocket ( and elsewhere ) realize that the Rocket, too, can change life as we knew it. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6...............