The online student news source of Lovejoy High School

The Red Ledger

The online student news source of Lovejoy High School

The Red Ledger

The online student news source of Lovejoy High School

The Red Ledger

How to not go bankrupt at the State Fair

The State Fair is a fun experience, but after a trip many students found themselves staring into empty wallets in confusion, wondering where their money went. Here are some simple tips to make the fair fun relatively painless for your wallet.
1. Give yourself a price ceiling at the beginning of the day. Agree with a friend not to spend more than, say, $20. Then, when you see a ride that is 14 tickets ($7), you can decide if it is really worth a third of the money you have to spend for the day.
2. Do not be fooled by the ticket system. This is a marketing tool to make it seem like you aren’t spending actual money, but you are! Keep everything in terms of dollars. That game is not 20 tickets, it is $10.
3. Avoid rides as much as possible. Most rides cost 10-15 tickets ($5-$7.50). If you are looking for adrenaline rush, a park with a flat fee (like Six Flags) is much more economical. If you are going to spend money on a ride, do it at the end of the day after you have seen them all, so that you can be sure you chose the best one.
4. Bring in your own food! This is allowed, and while you may want to spring for one or two fried dishes, bringing your own sandwiches or granola bars for lunch will save you a bundle of money and your body will probably thank you in the end.
5. Seek out and enjoy the free entertainment the fair offers. There is a petting zoo, a car show, and of course, priceless people watching. These cost nothing at all, and are definitely a part of the State Fair experience.
6. Stay away from carnival games. This is the biggest rip off of all the rip offs at the State Fair. The friendly vendors and massive stuffed animals are very tempting, but to win a big prize, you must have at least 40 credits, which equals $20! I don’t know about you, but I would never spend $20 on a five foot tall Jamaican banana if I saw it in a store, so why would I want to spend $20 on it at the State Fair, and then have to carry it around on my back for the rest of the day as an advertisement to everyone that sees me that I have money to throw away?
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Ginger Hervey, Editor-in-chief
Ginger Hervey cried on her eleventh birthday when she didn't get a Hogwarts letter. If there was an Olympic event for sitting around in sweatpants, eating ice cream, and watching old romance movies, she would make her country proud. She is an expert at procrastination and overloads her schedule past what any rational person would- as a result, she frequently tests how little sleep a teenager can get and still function on a basic level. To her, there is no such thing as "too old to trick-or-treat" on Halloween. To instantly be liked by Ginger, bring her chocolate chip cookies and/or mention the TV show How I Met Your Mother. She is a senior who, in spite of having ambitious plans of going to law school, can be found on weekends experimentally baking with her friends and watching Disney movies until she falls asleep on the couch. Entering her sixth and final year of high school newspaper, Ginger is thrilled to have such a dedicated and fun staff to work with, especially her co-editor, the sensational Liz Schasel. She hopes to leave a legacy of prestigious journalism and witty poll questions behind her.

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