Post Cheese Festival

It has taken these past two and a half weeks to wind down after Cheese Festival. The reports are good -- the Festival was a little more successful than last year, which is saying a lot for a transitional year. The Festival actually made a profit!! The Committee is already working on ideas for next year. Today is Halloween! The local kids have already had a "haunted walk" down main street (last Saturday) and will go out again this evening to trick-or-treat. We will have a quiet evening at the B&B since we are out of the City. I gave out candy to a few kids that came by the Spot this afternoon. And I got a big surprise -- a call from the Library saying that the decorated pumpkin I submitted for their contest won the "popular vote" as favorite over all. I did it as a lark, just to show the Spot kids an idea of what they could do. Last Saturday the Phoenix Circle Foundation held it's holiday session of Liquid Art and we painted "The Scream". It was fun. We had a couple of new people show up and they did great! Of course, we all had fun. Our next painting venture will be to decorate wine glasses! Watch our facebook pages (Phoenix Circle Foundation, Liquid Art, and Chaparral Retreat) for details of date and time for the next Liquid Art. The weather here has gone from freezing cold a couple of nights to 78 degrees this afternoon. This week has been very pleasant. We're hoping for rain on Saturday, even though that is the night for various Halloween parties. At least the temperature is supposed to be in the 60's over the coming weekend. And last but not least -- the upcoming election on Nov. 6. PLEASE GET OUT AND VOTE!! Locally, we have four mayoral candidates, two of whom are good prospects and want to see Watonga survive and even thrive. The other two have specific agendas that don't take into account, in my opinion (and this is "my opinion page"!!) the good of the entire community and its need for some changes. At a recent Town Hall meeting, one candidate didn't know what our town's current sales tax is and he's been on City Council for at least ten years!!! Unfortunately, one candidate has been known to change his vote based on who's buying him a beer. Some folks say it is the same in all small towns, but since I've been involved in the community here I've seen and spoken with several other small towns' community leaders who have been able to make positive changes happen. It's hard, but it can be done. I hope everyone will get out and vote, whatever their "politics" are. HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

IT IS CHEESE FESTIVAL WEEKEND! Almost everything is ready for a high-powered weekend! The temperature is supposed to be PERFECT, but there is a chance of rain. Rain hasn't kept us down in the past, and it won't this year either, but it sure would be nice if we had pleasant weather for a change. Youth & Family Services is sponsoring several events/activities: The Youth Art Show (with Canton school students' work); an apple-bobbing station and other carnival games; the Youth Food Contest; and the Miss Cheese Festival competition. We have 17 candidates for two awards: Little Miss Cheese Festival(ages 8-12) and Miss Teen Cheese Festival (ages 13-18). The winners will be selected by ballot vote cast during the day on Friday. The winners will then be announced on Saturday morning and the girls will ride in a convertible in the Parade on Saturday afternoon. They will also receive a generous Watonga gift certificate. Another new event will be "Watonga's Got Talent", with contestants to perform on Friday evening on the Centennial Stage. With all the musical performances, the two days promise to be lots of fun for everyone. I am chairing the Fine Arts Show again this year and have several new artists participating along with many of the regulars. I've been saving my money to be able to purchase something this year. On Thursday evening, 7:00 pm., we are hosting a wine & cheese reception for the artists and local people who would like to preview the art (and possibly buy something before the show is open to the public). Come see me at the Oasis Church building at the Art Show.

LIQUID ART events are going well. This is our latest attempt. I'm as happy with this one as any of the others. This month, on October 25, we're going to do "The Scream" by Edvard Munch. Should be fun.