Court and I went to the State Fair yesterday for two things: 1. Visit the liberals and 2. to see the Bodeans (Guess which one of us wanted to do which of those). We knew that the fair would be tough on Court, having just entered the 8th month of pregnancy. We attempted to calculate when the Bodeans would be on stage so we would spend as little time on our feet as possible.
By the time the second band finished up at the show Court was pretty beat. My back was starting to ache a little bit too. We had been standing around for 4 hours and had to take a break. We walked over to a green gate on the side of the grandstand and sat down for awhile. A security guard stood near us, guarding the opening of the gate.
We sat on the ground for a good 20 minutes without being harassed. The security guard started to get a little antsy not only with us but with others starting to gather around. He started escorting people away, asking them to not loiter by the gate. Finally, he walked over to us and asked us to kindly move along. “I have to ask you to move, ” he said, “I’ve let you stay here already too long. I have to keep this area clear.” We were not surprised by the request and we started packing up.
Getting a pregnant lady up off the ground takes a little bit of skill. Over the last few weeks I’ve begun to recognize when Court needs help in and out of cars or up off the ground or other precarious situations. I stood up as the guard had asked and grabbed Court’s hand, braced to pull her up, and with a swift motion helped her off the ground. We wiped the dirt off our pants and gathered our energy to move back into the crowd of drunks.
Moments later the same security walked over with a horrified look. “I’m sorry. Sorry…I..I didn’t realize. You’re pregnant. Here, take my chair.” It was a kind gester from him. We thanked him for his effort and approval to bend the rule a little bit. I realized Court has reached the point that we can start getting special treatment. I started wondering what else we could get…
In the end we were flattered by the gentleman’s willingness to help out and felt a little bad for him. I hope he didn’t take it too hard that he just asked a pregnant lady to not sit around anymore.
