Stories from the fair: Good eating

Night had settled in. Country music bounced through the speakers. Individual conversations at picnic tables combined to one neatly organized cacophony. And a variety of smells from food trucks and stands provided patrons at the Curry County Fair that familiar coziness:

Ribbon fries smothered in nacho cheese; turkey legs the size of footballs, funnel cakes with an avalanche of powdered sugar and sugary, rainbow-colored slushies to wash it all down.

And then there's kettle corn.

It's light enough to keep eating, but big enough to nosh on with others while waltzing through the fairgrounds. Sweet and salty enough to capture your attention. But never too sweet or salty, always leaving your hand digging back in the bag, hoping to fulfill a craving that never dies.

And for Randy and Rene Wright, who sell it at the Curry County Fair, it's practically a way of life.

They travel around from one fair to another, camping out and enjoying summer nights that feel frozen in time, but rife with novelty and possibility.

That and dollar signs of course.

A late-career pivot, they bought the stand several years ago and have found it to be a highly lucrative endeavor. Though Randy didn't say how much he makes, he said it's a "good amount."

On Tuesday night, helper Brad Wyman loaded up a smorgasbord of kernels into one massive vat, with vegetable oil and a hefty amount of sugar.

Nothing happened initially – but suddenly – one popped, then another and another. Within 10 seconds it was a war zone. The kernels were rapidly crackling and popping.

Some fled like shrapnel, thumping anyone in the forehead who stood nearby. A plume of smoke carrying scents of heaven ascended to the pearly gates.

And just like that it was dumped into a different vat to be packaged into plastic bags. Consumed by people eager to partake in a cultural touchstone of summer in America.