For the first time in our four summers here in Northfield, we ventured as a family to the town’s famous (or at least well-known) Defeat of Jesse James Days, a huge celebration centering on the town’s counterattack and defeat of Jesse James and his gang when they tried to rob the First National Bank of Northfield (my bank!) in 1876.
Knowing we would be able to last maybe two hours, we tried to see the “Teddy Bear Band,” which was supposed to be playing in a tent right in the center of the hubbub. In walking from our car to that spot, we accidentally wandered past one of the bank-raid reenactments, and the noise and commotion (horses! guns firing blanks! people shouting! a huge crowd watching!) terrified the girls. We hustled toward the entertainment tent, only to find that they had stopped playing before we arrive. (Note to the DJJD organizers: if your schedule says that the Teddy Bear Band plays from two until four, why did they stop playing at 3:15) Between the noise of the raid reenactment and missing the whole reason for the trip, both girls were on the verge of tears fifteen minutes after we’d arrived – and we hadn’t even linked up with the friends we were planning to see.
Activity FAIL.
Then! As we tried to figure out whether and how to compensate for these problems, and began to settle on going to the carnival for some rides, a friend of Shannon’s wandered by and offered to sell us some unused carnival tickets. One shady-looking curbside transaction later, we had enough tickets for a few rides, and off we went for a good hour of fun at the carnival – three rides apiece for the girls and peoplewatching aplenty for the “gwowmups” – or at least for me.*
Activity WIN.
This Carnival Ride Defeated Jesse James
* Though I saw more amazing things than I could or should report here, I can list my three favorite t-shirt slogans:
- “I’m the coolest person here” – worn by a tween boy as he clutched his dad’s hand
- “You can’t buy happiness, but you can buy the next best thing: BEER” – worn by a guy who acts on this maxim every day
- “I did WHAT last night?” – worn by a sixty-something grandma walking along with her grandkids
3 responses so far ↓
1 Richard // Sep 13, 2009 at 8:53 am
Hi,
I came across your blog. I’m in Teddy Bear Band & yes a mistake was made in advertising. We were booked from 2-2:45. Sorry for your inconvenience. Please send an e mail to me at bearband@minn.net and I’ll get our schedule to you and put you on our monthly schedule/ newsletter list.
Thank you for your support!
Stop up and say HI next time you come out.
2 Mary S. // Sep 13, 2009 at 7:14 pm
Next year, try the Kiddie Parade on Saturday morning. It’s the best event of DJJD — lasts all of about a half hour, the kids get to dress up and are the center of attention, and parents can sit on the sidelines sipping coffee while it happens. (activity: win!) I’m with the girls on the re-enactment. In 22 years in Northfield, I’ve never been able to sit through one. Too loud.
3 Defeated by Jesse James Days // Sep 11, 2010 at 7:39 pm
[...] so events that constitute Northfield’s biggest festival, the Defeat of Jesse James Days. As I wrote last year, DJJD is a huge celebration centering on the town’s counterattack and defeat of Jesse James and [...]
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