Balloons

Each year as summer moves past that halfway point we have a little festival in our area-The Pro Football Hall of Fame Festival.  Some of you may have heard of this.  For those of us that work in safety services it means a lot more activity.  People flock to our area to participate in all the events-the game, the parade, the inductees, the brunches, fashion show, ribs burn off, and my favorite part the hot air balloon competition.  We are so lucky to live somewhere, that once a year many hot air balloons grace our skies with their presence. 

When the weather is good, and the winds are just right they slowly fill and lift up over the trees.  The bright colored balloons with all the different shapes drift through the sunrises and sunsets of our area. 

There are some noises that are clearly distinguishable and the whoosh of the burner as it heats the air is one of them.  I can be in my house and hear that whoosh  outside, and I know to step out my front door and look up.

 I used to love Saturday and Sunday mornings to watch the balloon competition, because once upon a time only a few diehard competition watchers would be out in the morning-not so much anymore.  I used to sit peacefully and drink my coffee and take it all in.  Now there are crowds at all times watching the balloons.  Not that the crowds are such a bad thing, I am well aware of how important tourism is for our area.  We really only have a short period of time we put up with the extra traffic.   Just when I get used to all the traffic, everyone starts heading out, the crowds become smaller and our skies are a little emptier without the beautiful colors and wonderful shapes…..until next year.