HAPPY 4th OF JULY!!!!!!!

We had All-American night last night. Went to a baseball game. Believe it or not this is the first baseball game I've seen all season. Somehow, baseball just isn't the same. It's lost it's luster a little bit. How sad is that? Luckily, the game we went to see wasn't full of over-priced, underachieving steriod users or third-base coaches who break your heart...but good old-fashioned guys trying to play a child's game as long as possible before growing up! (We went to see the Camden Riversharks - independant minor league BB.) It was alot of fun.

I'm a little disappointed about the parde situation here, though. Last year, we went to my g-parents to watch the parade, which wasn't very long and the marching band consisted of 4 guys with instruments on the back of a truck. Their town is one of the very few around here who even HAVE parades anymore. Our town did away with theirs a few years ago. (They also hold fireworks always on the Saturday following the 4th of July. How unpatriotic is that?) So, no parade this year. I thought about dressing the cats up and throwing candy to anyone who walked by, but somehoe...that's just not the same. We WILL be heading to g-mom and pop's for fireworks tonight, with my cousins, Aunt and Unlce, and (gotta say this syrupy) Sean (he got here for breakfast! Who gets up early on a day off! :) )

Just thought I'd add some Americana to your day; to celebrate a country that's been celebrating itself, it's people, and it's freedoms for 11 months. Imagine living in a country like some of those we read about - where women can't hold jobs or leave the house without a man or even dress as they wish (Can you imagine 95 degree heat under the head-to-toe/face covered garb?). Or in a place where everyday overhead souns like the 4th of July with "bombs bursting in air"? Or in a place where how many kids you have is regulated? Or living the country to reside somewhere else involves a raft under the cover of darkness and alot of praying? Or where going to the marketplace for food for your family might result in your death at the hands of someone who kills himself in the name of God? Or where the number of people killed at the hands of foreign terrorists or guerillas 11 months ago is not even close to 1/2 the number of innocent people killed every year?

I may not take each day to celebrate all the freedoms of my country. I may complain about the ones imposed on us that I don't agree with or our country (at one time) being run by an idiot...but that's one of the many great things about America. I can. I can complain, protest, and even fight for my freedoms. I can wear a tank top and short shorts in 95 degree weather if I choose. I can go to the grocery store only really worried about buying a bunch of stuff 'cuz I'm shopping hungry. :) I can have 50 kids, or none at all. The only "bombs bursting in air over my head" occur for about a week every year and is a spectator event; and if I want to move to a country where this is a common occurrance, I don't need a raft, only a plane ticket and a passport. If I don't like the idiot running the country, I can work hard and vote to get him out of there (although, he still hasn't vanished from the public like I'd like him too.) I can complain about that and this without fear of being throw in jail or executed because my beliefs may differ from those in power. And 11 months ago, my father came home safe and sound, in one piece while a country mourned the loss of those taken in OUR country in senseless violence by terrorists or guerillas, because it doesn't happen frequently. It made us stronger. It made us value where we live, how we were raised and to appreciate all those who fought and continue to fight every day to insure the freedoms, our freedoms, which were the anchor of the founding of our country.

I hope you all have a wonderful INDEPENDANCE DAY!!!!! (Well, except Neil and the wife. I'm kinda hoping a "bomb bursting in air" hits them on the head! :) I miss him and our 4th of July spent together, so I'm allowed to channel my grief and sadness into anger! :) It's the American Way! :) ) I'm off to the store to get BBQ sauce and stuff for our barbeque in a few hours. Happy Red, White, and Blue and God Bless.

Jenn

I was looking for the quote/speech from Jane Curtain when she was a guest on Weekend update. She's rambling on and on about how she's "proud to wrap my baby in American Flag diapers", while Chevy Chase is making faces at her. For those of you who've seen it, you'll know exactly why I'm thinking of it. For those of you who haven't...I've got it on the 25th Anniversary tape! :)