Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th of July everyone!

Here are just a few of my favorite memories from the 4th:

Learning that with a little creativity and a full book of matches, anyone can be a ninja.

Sparklers!- It really doesn't matter how old you are, it's still fun to watch the glowing trail left behind when you swirl it around.

Bottle rocket wars. Yeah, this was not one of our best ideas, but we had fun anyway.

When my parents finally let me hold a roman candle. Awesome!

Watching Lady Liberty finally reopen after years under scaffolding while being repaired.

Watching the Macy's fireworks display at the river with my family. We used to do this almost every year.

and...

Watching the Washington D.C. fireworks display from the center of the reflection pool in front of the Lincoln Memorial. This one requires a back story...

When I was 17 my cousin Mindy came to spend the summer with us. Even though she lives just outside of Los Angeles, we used to be as close as close can be back then but we were also a handful. Since my cousin had never been out East for the 4th and since she had never been to the Nation's Capital, my Dad decided this was probably the best time to take a trip. We hung around the city, did some sightseeing and in the evening we prepared a picnic dinner. After dinner we packed up out stuff and made our way down to the reflection pool to get a better view of the fireworks. Mindy and I had to hit the port-a-potties but the lines were sooooo long we decided to jump from bathroom site to bathroom site to find a shorter line. We thought my parents heard us say we would be back, but they didn't hear us. When we finally made it back, my family was gone! We looked around for a while but nothing. Then we heard a boom; the fireworks were starting. Since it was just the two of us and we were rail thin we meandered all the way through the huge crowd, to the edge of the reflection pool. We knew they would be around there somewhere. Then it dawned on us. What better way place to look for them than the middle of the reflection pool, some people were already standing along the edges anyway. Not to mention, it was a hell of a lot less crowded there. We sloshed through the water and walked into the dead center. Eventually, others followed suit and some even fully submerged themselves in the water. The view from there was fantastic. That had to be one of the prettiest fireworks displays I have ever seen. Since there wasn't anyone around us, it felt like the we were the only ones watching; like it was just for us.

After the show ended, we heard and saw a helicopter with a huge spotlight coming right toward us. We pretty much ran out of there as fast as we could. My parents met us at the edge. Our plan worked. They saw us. They weren't so thrilled, but at least they knew immediately where to find us. When they realized we were missing, they searched by looking in the places where we would most likely get into trouble in that area. Moments after my Mom said that, my brother Alvin spotted us walking into the water.

In case you're wondering, the pool is about three feet deep and yes, it's pretty cold.