Finksburg -- Wasteland Sweet Home?

I fell in love with this house, which is why we moved to Finksburg.  Before we started house-hunting, I had only ever been to Carroll County once, to visit a client in the local jail.  When I arrived in Carroll County that day, I wondered why in God's name anyone would ever live here.  Let me put it this way:  I am a shopper, and the only stores that I eyed were Truckin' America and Tractor Supply Company.  Carroll County used to be mostly agricultural, and only recently has it been developed.  To be fair to Finksburg, that visit to the jail took place almost 10 years ago.  Recently there has been a lot of movement to this area by young(ish) professionals wanting to get out of the city but not be too far from it.  That would be us.  In fact, we were introduced to the area by our friends, Carl and Gergana.  Gergana is a sophisticated European.  If she could live in Finksburg, then surely it can't be bad, thought I.

There are days when I question my real estate judgment.  Gergana and I have considered circulating a petition to change the town's name.  That would be a start, but doesn't really get to the heart of the matter.  I'm not knocking my community at all.  Finksburg is part of the greater Baltimore area-- there are beautiful houses, blue ribbon public schools, lovely parks, a decent mix of chain and independent restaurants, and acceptable shopping (including Target).  The crime rate is low, and the people here are very friendly.  It's only 20 miles into Baltimore City and 45 miles into Washington, D.C.  But I grew up just outside of Los Angeles, one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world.  By comparison, Finksburg is like a certain unmentionable city in Egypt.  When my children get older I want them to feel like they had a culturally rich upbringing, and sometimes I worry they will be deprived of that because of the effort it takes to access the offerings of a big city.  Randy and I are tired.  I worry we won't  have the energy to make aforementioned effort, and as a consequence, when my children are older they will seem like there were raised in the unmentionable city in Egypt.   

I voiced my concern to Randy on Saturday.  "You wanted this house," he reminded me. 

That is true.  I knew when I pushed this house on him that I would never be entitled to complain about anything associated with it ever, but I loved it so much I didn't care. Randy was on the fence about this house.  Ever so persuasive, I reasoned with him:  "We could buy the house that we like and can easily afford, but you would have to hear me say for the rest of our lives, 'I like our house, but I wish we could have bought that other house.'  OR  we could buy the house that we love even though it costs more, and you could hear me say for the rest of our lives, 'I LOVE our house.'" I guess the thought of listening to me complain about our destination house for the rest of our natural lives was too much for him to bear, because, well, here we are.

"I love our house," I reiterated, "but don't you think we sort of live in a cultural wasteland?"  

Randy gave me this look. A look that I interpreted as saying, we're not moving.  "It's not a wasteland," he said.  But I noticed that he didn't offer anything in the way of support for his position.

Approximately six hours later, Randy came up with something to back up his claim.  He had heard from his new female barber (who has several tattoos and was shot (yeah, with a gun) on July 4th, evidently lived to tell about it, and was back to barbering by July 17th) that there was an event happening that evening that we might be interested in, since I wanted to expose the children to enriching experiences.  The event:  The smash up derby.  Having never been to such an event when I was growing up outside of L.A., I asked him to explain.  Definition:  "It's like bumper cars, but with real cars that are junky, and they go fast." 

And I thought we lived in a cultural wasteland.  Silly me.  What better way to turn out sophisticates than watching cars purposely crashing into each other at high speeds?    

I have to admit, though, that a small part of me is interested in the smash up derby.  Unfortunately, we had prior commitments, so I made a mental note to remember to do it next year.  Really.  No, really.

Randy also reminded me that the 4-H fair is also going to be next weekend.  We have gone to the 4-H fair before.  Last year, Skyler watched piglets being born.  My mother even went with us and saw Alpacas up close and personal for the first time.  We watched sheep being shorn, and learned to identify different cows. 
There is also a carnival circuit that goes from fire department to fire department.  So far we have been to two carnivals this summer, and we plan to go to our favorite one, the Reese Volunteer Fire Department Carnival, on Friday. 

Did I just claim to have a favorite carnival?  I guess I did.  We have made a tradition of going to these local carnivals every summer.  Skyler goes on all the kiddie rides, and Randy goes on the bigger rides with her while I take pictures.  (See pictures following this post).  We always eat dinner there -- usually pit beef and milkshakes -- and then get funnel cakes for dessert.  Skyler comes home with junky prizes and a look of pure contentment.  It's usually on a balmy summer evening, and we always see someone we know -- a neighbor, Skyler's classmate, my hair dresser.  I never went to carnivals when I was a kid -- although there were lots of trips to Circus Circus in Las Vegas -- and I sort of held an aversion to them.  Something about a ferris wheel that is transported on a small trailer bothers me.  But I have actually grown to like carnivals. 

Now that I think about it, last year we attended several Carroll County events that we really enjoyed:

• The roasted corn festival.  My mother was here last summer and saw this advertised in the paper.  She loves corn, so off we went.  For $9.00 per person, you got fried chicken and all you can eat the roasted corn-on--the-cob, served by a volunteer.  We ate tons of corn just before a huge thunderstorm rolled through, soaking everyone. 
•  The peach festival, where there were things made of peach that I didn't know could be made of peach. The cobbler was to die for. 
• The butterfly festival, where you could adopt a monarch butterfly and then track it to see if it made it to Mexico.   (See pictures posted following this blog)
• The home and design show at the Farm Museum, where everything related to taking care of your home was on display.  For some reason a lot of the vendors were giving away wood backscratchers, and Skyler any my mother went on a mission to collect as many as possible. 
• Handbag silent auction at the Carroll Arts Center. 
• Peep Show.  Works of art made of the marshmallow treats.  One of my favorite entries was a bust in the likeness of the singer formerly known as P. Diddy, and it was entitled "Peep Diddy."  Next year, Skyler and I plan to submit an exhibit.  
• Christmas tree farms.  It's great fun to trudge out in the snow, pick the biggest tree that will fit in our house, and watch Randy cut it down with his bare hands and drag it to our truck.  There's always free hot apple cider and hot chocolate, too. 

There are other events that we haven't had the chance to attend yet:  tractor pulls, apple festival, parades, tree-lighting festival.

Okay, so it's not Shakespeare at the Ford Amphitheater, but it's not that bad.  There is a very special feeling that comes with belonging to a community that gets excited about the carnivals and festivals that take place every year.   Upon further thought, I feel fortunate that my kids will have the best of both worlds:  small town and big city experiences.  It really doesn't take much effort to drive into Baltimore or Washington, D.C. - there are tons of museums, ethnic restaurants, the ballet, opera,.  Also, we fly to California regularly still, and we will take the kids on trips to foreign and exotic places.  But it's also nice to have fun in our own back yard.  Upon even further thought, I love our house, which is in this great neighborhood, which is in this neat little town, which holds these fun events that we will turn into fond memories.