oh, the fair. the fair.

are you ready for this? alex and i judged everything in this photograph plus two more rounds for the food preservation section at the north carolina state fair.

it was incredible; we tasted jams, preserves, juices, jellies, and pickles. you only judge strawberry jam against strawberry jam, for example, and each category's size depends on its number of entrants. the bread and butter pickle category had 20-25 jars. it was insane.

but, more importantly, we also were able to nominate mind-blowing items for "best of show." we were quite choosey about this process; we didn't want to send just anything. in the end, we nominated a pineapple jelly (i know. it doesn't sound amazeballs, but it is.) and raspberry-jalapeno preserves, both of which won. yes. we are so influential. 

also, it's decorative gourd season, motherfuckers. (no, it never gets old.)