Independence Day memories

[MoonCat]

I'm feeling nostalgic.

When we were kids the highlight of the 4th of July celebration was the fireworks. We never went to any public fireworks displays....we had our own at home. My dad used to drive over to Canada to bring them (which, I think, wasn't really legal... not sure)

Sparklers and Roman candles and fountains and firecrackers...cherry bombs, M80's...and one year we had a little cardboard schoolhouse with a firecracker in the chimney. You put it in a bucket of sand, light the chimney and bang! Then watched the little schoolhouse burn to ash. That was one of our favorites.

Once he lit a fountain and it didn't go off. He went over to see if the spark had gone out and was just carefully leaning over to peek when it went up. He managed to duck back out of the way in time.

My father had a friend who worked for the railroad and he used to pick up some railroad flares. He'd set them up next to the curb and they'd burn for a long time. All over the neighborhood, everyone else was lighting off fireworks, too. When we were older we'd go sit up in the attic so we could watch fireworks from the windows.

Now I worry a bit about the neighbors having fireworks....I don't want anything to land on the roof. When you grow up, a lot of things aren't simple any more.

Happy Independence Day, everybody!

[protege]

In many years past, we'd be on vacation for the 4th. There's nothing like sitting on the roof (or upper story) of a rented beach house. Even better, was watching them on the beach itself. Then some dipshit got herself drunk, and got burnt while messing with the fireworks...causing Cape May to not have them for a few years.

Coming in 2nd, was the time we saw them from Mt. Washington here in Pittsburgh. Lots of loud tunes, fireworks...but that isn't what I remember. What I do remember, is my dad having my little brother on his shoulders...and tripping when walking back to the car. Dad tripped on the sidewalk, and my brother went flying. He landed with enough force to cut his head...and bash in his nose

[Racket_Man]

the most fun memory of the July 4th season occured when I was around 4, 5 or 6 years old (can not remember exacty what year '64 - '66)

The Interstate highwas system in my birth city (St. Louis)was being built along the Miss. River in the south part (south of the Anheiser brewery) of the city (I-55). they had most of it completed. it was all blocked off but you could just walk past the barriers and onto the roadway. earlier that summer my Father and I walked along the roadway as there was little construction work going on.. Now for the past I can't remember how many years the city (and now the Veiled Profit thing IF I remember correctly) do a massive fireworks show on the Miss. river in front of the Arch. so that year we gathered up a few lawn chairs and a small cooler and walked the 2 miles to the highway and along with a bunch of other people who had the same idea watched the fireworks display.

The other real fun time I had was when I created my own show. in my youth all of the other kids in the neighborhood had fireworks but I did not. the next morning I would search the alley for unexploded ordinance and have fun with that.

a little time passed. in my early 20's I had some extra money and blew it on $300 (you could buy A LOT of stuff for that price back then in the early 80's)worth of explosive and whzzzzy stuff and then proceeded to have a fireworks war with myself by myself as no one else in the neighborhood did anything anymore.

I think I STILL have one pack of firecrackers from that batch.

[BeenThereDoneThat]

When I was a kid we spent most major holiday weekends (especially the spring/summer ones) at my grandparents' home in the Berkshire hills of upstate NY. It's beautiful up there...sometimes too quiet for active suburban/city kids, but plenty to do outdoors. It was one of the few times of the year when all of my dad's sisters and their spouses/kids would get together, and some of us would camp or RV out in the huge backyard. Sometimes we'd go to a local fireworks show, but most of the time one of my less "proper" uncles would bring a ton of stuff up to the house (he may have gotten it on trips to Georgia where his mom lived -- down here it's easy to find the stuff) and we'd light it off in the backyard. Sometimes we'd have to drive home to NJ on the night of the Fourth since my dad had to work the next day, and as we got close to NYC we could see their fireworks display over the hills and trees and buildings. Ahh, great stuff there.

[teh_blumchenkinder]

Fireworks are so fun. I'm glad I can still enjoy them, despite the risks and such that people go on about. --and believe me I am keenly aware of these risks! I live in a semi-arid desert that's been in a drought for the last 15-20 years (afaik)!
Anyway. I won't tell you where I set these things off, and besides, these memories span a few states.
Annyhoo...
Overall, I enjoy the magical glowy-ness of fire with a purpose. It never seemed to end when I was younger. Nowadays, I coordinate the mini-show my Dad lets me and my sister (when she's here, darnit) purchase. I start small with like ground blooms and stuff, then work up to things like volcanoes, sometimes making a chain of small to big, then stuff like bottle rockets and roman candles (OMG LOVE) (no, none of the three of theses situations have happened to me! ), then bigger things, then winding down with middle, then some smallers... generally not the same as the way 'up.' I like that sort of thing, and it makes it cool.
I've never set anything on fire, either.
A more specific memory: once, when I was in middle school, we had bought some sparklers that I haven't been able to find since. What was awesome about these was that they changed color! Red, silver, blue! It was rad.
EDIT: a friend of mine and his family/friends in HisTown set(s) up an entire small city of buildings and 'cars' to destroy with fireworks, including tanks and airplanes! XD I need to find that youtube vid...

[AccountingDrone]

This property belonged to my Grandparents [yup, 9 acres, 600 feet lakefrontage] and we owned the second cottage to the right. 4th of July the entire lake would have been given these roadside type flares, and everybody was to set them into the lake edge every 20 feet or so, and at a specific time light them. The town of Perry NY would then have a fireworks display from the town dock area. It was called Lake of Fire or some such name. I think it stopped in the 90s.



[sorry for the whole Alices Restaurant sort of circles and arrows and [lack of] VW van, Hubby and I are discussing repurchasing the property and were discussing what to do to it if we did ...]

[dalesys]

Alice's Restaurant sort of circles and arrows and [lack of] VW van

Where are the plaster of paris dog-sniffing prints?