The Hot Air Affair balloon festival in Hudson, Wisconsin occurs shortly after the new year. The finale weekend starts with a Friday night parade called the Torchlight in which vehicles tow wicker baskets and pilots on flatbed trailers. The pilots blast their burners, minus the balloons, and send comets of fire upward, wiggling, and angled heating the evening air.
The next morning if the wind is ‘good’ a sunrise balloon launch takes place on a local school field. The different balloon crews unroll yards of nylon then use industrial fans to fill the balloon’s insides with hot air. A balloon is launched within the first thirty minutes, and dozens more follow over the next hour. It was crazy cool to be steps near these inflated, multi-story, colored giants and then watch them ascend into the upper atmosphere.
I find it interesting that I discovered this festival in the first month of the new year. I’m not a new year resolution maker, but I have been putting energies and time into my dreams and goals. One of my goals is to eat a piece of fruit every day. A chocolate cookie entices me more than an apple. Then there are my dreams and desires that are requiring me to learn new skill sets and frankly, some of those push me out of my comfort zone. I’m trying to be careful about not spouting hot air and accepting it from others. I’m filling myself with knowledge and practice hours hoping to give myself lift so I can take flight.