This week, I was lucky enough to find an incredible event literally right around the corner from the Middletown Press office. I attended the St. Sebastian Festival, which was held this weekend at St. Sebastian Church as part of a celebration of the church's patron.

I was telling my good friend Leah, who happened to be visiting me this past weekend, about the event, and it certainly piqued her interest. You see, Leah has studied and worked in Italy for more than a year and returned to the states only a few months ago. She couldn't resist the temptation of the much-discussed desserts and Italian food at the event, and I was glad to have her accompany me and graciously allow me to show off the city in which I work.

Upon arriving Saturday on a perfectly warm and cloudless afternoon, we milled around the area of the church yard populated with carnival rides and met some local people. We first met Cindy Mann, who attended with her children Gianna, 4, and Tyler 11, as well as her fiance, Julius Thomas, all of Middletown. I snapped some photos of Gianna taking a fun tumble down an inflatable slide. Her favorite ride was the helicopters, she told me.

We also met Joe Serrano and his wife, Tammi, of Middletown, who were reviving a tradition at this year's festival with their children, Anthony, 5, and Nicholas, 8 months.

"When I was a kid I used to come here," Serrano said. "This is my first time coming here since I was a kid." We watched as Anthony gleefully navigated an "Alice in Wonderland"-themed funhouse, somewhat jealous because Leah and I were both in agreement that it looked like much fun, and that our funhouse days had certainly come and gone.

We then met Kelly Nowotynski, her daughter, Alexis Riley, 4, Nicholas Amenta and his daughter, Elizabeth, 5, all of Middletown. They were headed for the car ride, and I snapped some shots as the girls raced round and round on matching motorcycles.

Upon leaving the carnival rides area, we set our eyes on a dunking booth, and I couldn't resist taking a few more shots. We met Michael Vecchitto, who was one of the day's many volunteers. He was thoroughly cold and wet by the time we made his acquaintance, and we waited patiently to watch the dunking. Too bad we were both in the splash zone when it happened!

By this time we had worked up a sufficient appetite, especially because we were in the food area of the church yard and there were so many delicious smells mingling in the midway. Many different restaurants were on hand with booths, providing some staple items. We spoke with Joanne Camp, of Middletown, a member of St. Sebastian Church who said she has been coming to the festival "for as long as they've had it."

"I like just being out and seeing the people," she said. "And eating." She got our attention. We asked what the best thing to have was, and she said the sausage grinders were good, but a bit on the spicy side.

As a journalist, I spend a lot of time tracking down good stories, so I love it when a good story tracks me down! Leah and I were all set to grab some grinders and test the advice for ourselves when I was flagged down by Michael Hennessey, who told me that he and his friends, Mark Tuttle and Brian Vandeventer, all of Portland, had given their wives the day off and taken their children for what Hennessey called "Daddy daycare."

Hennessey, originally from Middletown, was familiar with the event and thought it would be "a good distraction to tire the children out a little bit."

"This is a fantastic family fun event," he added. Each father came with two children. The Hennessy children were Brynn, 6, and Caden, 3, the Tuttle children were Mason, 4, and Mara, 2, and the Vandeventer children were Leah, 4, and Chase, 1. As I recorded ages, Leah was quick to correct her father's report and inform me that she was, in fact, 4 and a half, and Brynn added that she was 6 and a half. Let the record show these half years, I say! (How cute?!)

After saying our goodbyes, the older Leah and I bought some tickets and were set off of our sausage grinder path when we realized that fried ravioli was a possibility. And boy was it good, and just this side of too rich. With an excess of tickets -- like I didn't have that planned all along -- we needed to purchase desserts. On a hot day like that, there was no other option for me but Italian ice. I spoke to the vendor, who told me that he probably forms 300 scoops each day of the festival. I guess I wasn't the only one needing an ice-cold treat! Leah was happy to find a pastry called sfogliatelle, which she hasn't seen for purchase since a trip to southern Italy many months ago. Delighted, she peeled off ribbons of her pastry and recounted her many happy memories of Italy. We made our way down Washington Street, enjoying our desserts and reflecting on a happy afternoon spent at the festival. Clearly this time I wasn't the only one who left the event with a story to tell.