People in my neighborhood have been shooting off firecrackers and "small explosives" for the better part of the evening.
Getting an early start, I guess.
Cool thing (I remember this from last year), from where my apartment is, I can stand on my porch and see a pretty wide, sweeping view of the horizon, from the north, and sweeping clockwise to the south/southeast.
I can stand there and see three separate fireworks displays, in their entirety, from the porch, across the horizon.
One is up north of me, at Camp Pendleton, the two more to the east and south.
Last year, it was quite cool to stand on my porch, with a beer in hand, and just watch the horizon and enjoy three simultaneous displays! They all started within 5 or so minutes of each other too, so that was cool.
Probably do it again tomorrow night. Gonna stay in and avoid the crowds, traffic, roadblocks, etc.
[quote]My parents left the Soviet Union on June 13, 1975 - 27 years ago this summer - with my brother (age 2) and me (age 7) in tow. Fortunately, we didn't have to jump over the Berlin Wall, or try to paddle across the Black Sea. As Jews, we were allowed to leave, thanks to America, which more or less bought us in exchange for grain shipments to the Soviets.
But here's the part that's odd to Americans: My parents left having no real idea of what life in the U.S. is like. Imagine that you wanted to move to France. What would you do? Why, you'd talk to some Frenchmen. You'd talk to some Americans who had been to France. You'd read some reliable books about France. You'd visit there. You might even move there for a couple of months and see how you'd like it.
None of this was possible for my parents, or for tens of thousands of others like them. The Soviet Union was a closed society. Travel to the West was virtually impossible. Western tourists were closely guarded.
Western books and magazines were banned. Voice of America was jammed; and when you could listen to it - as my parents often could, albeit clandestinely - you couldn't know for sure whether it was accurate or not. There were no other sources to compare it to, other than the Soviet government's anti-American slanders...<hr></blockquote>
Comments
Hehe. The Canadians aren't going to like comments like those.
(and it really is the 4th now)
LOL
PS : to Jamie, now that you are a mod , you are not oblige to say this
Getting an early start, I guess.
Cool thing (I remember this from last year), from where my apartment is, I can stand on my porch and see a pretty wide, sweeping view of the horizon, from the north, and sweeping clockwise to the south/southeast.
I can stand there and see three separate fireworks displays, in their entirety, from the porch, across the horizon.
One is up north of me, at Camp Pendleton, the two more to the east and south.
Last year, it was quite cool to stand on my porch, with a beer in hand, and just watch the horizon and enjoy three simultaneous displays! They all started within 5 or so minutes of each other too, so that was cool.
Probably do it again tomorrow night. Gonna stay in and avoid the crowds, traffic, roadblocks, etc.
Happy Fourth of July!
(from England)
<strong>For some reason it's not a holiday here in Germany. I don't get it.</strong><hr></blockquote>
At least we have October 3rd.
Happy Independence Day, folks!
<strong>We will one day reclaim our former colony, make the rebels our slaves and copulate with their females.
maybe the original colonies. but the rest of the country will kick yer asses...
<strong>
maybe the original colonies. but the rest of the country will kick yer asses...</strong><hr></blockquote>
Since I currently reside in PA, I resent that!!!
<strong>To a nation I love second only to my own,
It's just turned 4th July 2002 here so it gives me great pleasure to wish you all a Happy Independence Day!</strong><hr></blockquote>
Thank you very much, Jamie.
Was going to start a new thread for this story but this is a good home for it, I think. It's an immigrant's Independence Day story.
<a href="http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-volokh070302.asp"; target="_blank">Courage</a>
America, the great unknown.
By Eugene Volokh
[quote]My parents left the Soviet Union on June 13, 1975 - 27 years ago this summer - with my brother (age 2) and me (age 7) in tow. Fortunately, we didn't have to jump over the Berlin Wall, or try to paddle across the Black Sea. As Jews, we were allowed to leave, thanks to America, which more or less bought us in exchange for grain shipments to the Soviets.
But here's the part that's odd to Americans: My parents left having no real idea of what life in the U.S. is like. Imagine that you wanted to move to France. What would you do? Why, you'd talk to some Frenchmen. You'd talk to some Americans who had been to France. You'd read some reliable books about France. You'd visit there. You might even move there for a couple of months and see how you'd like it.
None of this was possible for my parents, or for tens of thousands of others like them. The Soviet Union was a closed society. Travel to the West was virtually impossible. Western tourists were closely guarded.
Western books and magazines were banned. Voice of America was jammed; and when you could listen to it - as my parents often could, albeit clandestinely - you couldn't know for sure whether it was accurate or not. There were no other sources to compare it to, other than the Soviet government's anti-American slanders...<hr></blockquote>