There’s just something about the fair.

It doesn’t matter how old you are, there’s always something exciting about fair time.

And fair time in Kitsap County starts next week. The Kitsap County Fair will be happening Aug. 21 to 25 at the Kitsap County Fairgrounds.

For me, fair time takes me back to my childhood and my memories of the MidAmerica Fair in my hometown of Topeka, Kansas. It became the Sunflower State Expo, and although it wasn’t the State Fair, it was a big one.

There were rides I’d never even think of going on and rodeos and car races that didn’t really interest me. But I knew my mom would be patient enough to walk me around the carnival games while I tried to win a giant teddy bear. Then she’d ride the Merry-Go-Round with me and after that, we’d look at displays of vegetables and homemade pies and get a hot dog and some popcorn.

In later years, for me the fair meant being the reporter assigned to cover whatever I could find at the Evergreen State Fair in Monroe, Washington.

It never ceased to amaze other reporters and editors at the paper where I worked that I could go to the fair every day year-after-year and come back with some new story that we hadn’t had the year before.

Whether it was talking to the carnies, trying out some new deep-fried something or frozen treat, or watching the “chicken dressing” 4H competition, I’d come back with a story. (My favorite was when the chicken dressed as Elvis ditched his miniature cowboy hat and flew off after coming in second-place to a chicken dressed like a taco.)

And I do remember fondly the year the Charmin toilet tissue bear was on hand to give out sample of a new softer tissue at the recently-renovated bathrooms on the Evergreen Fairgrounds.

Whatever your fair memories, this is a great opportunity to make more. The Kitsap County Fair has everything a fair needs —rides, food, agricultural exhibits, give-aways and even a pie-eating contest.

Many, many hours of volunteer labor goes into the fair each year. Planning starts for next year, right after this year’s fair ends. That’s dedication deserving of our attention.

It’s great entertainment at very reasonable prices and there’s something for everyone.

If rides and exhibits aren’t your thing, then take in a rodeo or a destruction derby. Visit the wine garden or browse through the booths filled with gadgets to add to your home.

Like this year’s theme says, “It’s so much fun, you’ll have a cow.”