A Holiday Gift for You!

So last year there were no fireworks. Due to the sad economy, whoever pays for the fireworks over the harbor decided not to spring for it. We thought it was a poor decision, as the previous year drew the biggest crowd we have ever seen.  We love walking down to the pier and watching the fireworks. Someone had the bright idea of syncing the whole thing up with music via the radio, so the cars parked there crank up the sound and we have a patriotic extravaganza.  We sing along. Kate Smith smiles down from Heaven. If she's there. We hope she's there.

If she's in Purgatory, then we could have offered up our sufferings of missing out on the only fireworks around for Kate Smith.

How many of you even know who Kate Smith is any more?  She famously belted out "God Bless America".  When I think of that song, I think of Kate Smith. She looked like a refrigerator dolled up in a dress.

I digress.

This year the fireworks are back! We are thrilled. I can't tell you how much fun it is to see so many people walking in the same direction, lined up along the bike path, standing along the waterfront, camped out on blankets in Chase Park.  If you walk far enough you can see the boat out in the water where the fireworks are coming from.

And the weather has been clear. Some years we have a cloud cover and the fireworks shoot up into the clouds.  You can't see them AT ALL.  It just looks like colorful lighting.  It's a sad thing.  Very sad for whoever paid for them.

So we're tickled pink about this year's festivities.

Here's something else I'm tickled pink about: you can listen to St. Hildegarde!  You can download her tunes! Can you believe it? Is technology more wonderful than not? You can purchase the whole album or you can download one tune at a time. And you can have a listen first.

Fireworks for me. St. Hildgarde for you.  Happy holiday.

Hmmmm......rather make everyone say "Merry Christmas" instead of "Happy Holiday" we need to come up with another name for days when we celebrate and take a break that are not religious.  I never understand when people are mad about saying Happy Holidays during the Christmas season, as the word "holiday" actually means "Holy Day".  It's like "Good Bye", which is just old English for "God Be with You".

The Fourth of July is not a holiday, other than that we try to make each day holy.

Happy Fourth.  And Good bye!