Hill Billy 4th

Lee's best man at our wedding and all around best friend is Jack. Now Jack is a pyromaniac. There's no denying it. And the 4th of July is hands down his most favorite holiday because it allows him to indulge in all of his fire/explosion/general destructive needs. He budgets for the 4th. He remembers all the names of each firework and can easily identify any new products on the market. He knows his fireworks. And he filled the rear end of his truck with them.

Abby's eyes lit up like lights. She and Jack understood each other perfectly.

We spent the late afternoon and evening at Jack's, enjoying BBQ food and good company. But when the sun went down and the breeze picked up, we delighted in one of the coolest 4ths we could remember. For one thing, the temperature was cool - this alone was awesome because it's CA and July. For another, the firework show was impressively amazing - and it went on and on and on.

Abby loved the lights and whistles and popping for about five minutes. Then she was done. It's not that she got bored. It's that she started to get scared. First, she asked to sit in my lap instead of her own chair. Then she turned her face away from the show. Then she covered her mouth. Next, she requested that we move further away from the lights. A request for a comforting blanket, some more water, and then almost any excuse to move away from the fireworks was thought up and sounded out. I pacified her as much as I could, but I put my foot down when she wanted to go into the back yard.

By the end of it all, mind you there were a ton of fireworks, even I was getting annoyed with it. It grates on the nerves after more than twenty minutes, man. Not to mention that the kid was grating on my nerves too.

But it was fun. And it was cool. And Abby learned to say "Happy Birthday, America!"