HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA - HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY

The 4th of July has always been one of my favorite holidays.  Not because of the picnics and the fireworks but because everyone starts thinking about the men and women who have fought and given their lives for us and how important being an American is.  Not that I don't love hot dogs and hamburgers on the grill and potatoe salad, I sure do.  It also meant I usually had the day off work and had a three day weekend.

As you get older, holidays start changing.  When we were young we would pack up a big cooler and a grill and head out to the park or Lake Michigan and spend the day just having fun.  Now most of my holidays are spent doing what I do on non holidays.  Polymer Clay, making jewelry, cleaning toilets.  OH BOY.

Last night we went with some friends to Lake Pleasant Park in Arizona.  It's about a half hour north of us and has a beautiful lake that needs some rain.  They had fire works and food vendors and music.  We left at 6 o'clock and got caught in a dust storm on the way there.  It came up again while we were there, boy was it  dirty.  It took a half hour to get a corn dog and a drink because the lines were so long but it was a good corn dog.

 All of a sudden the wind stopped and it was very quiet. The music stopped and the Honor Guard from Luke Airforce Base came out, you could have heard a pin drop.

 Every one got to their feet and sang the National Anthem.

No sooner did the honor guard leave and it started lightening.  I was sitting in a metal based chair and got a little nervous.  My husband said it was cloud to cloud so I shouldn't worry???  Like that meant something to me.  They started the fire works and they were beautiful.

Then it started raining.  So now I'm really dirty from the dust storm, it's lightening and I'm getting wet and the dirt is running down my face and legs and neck.  All of a sudden there are 5,000 people trying to get to their cars. I'm carrying the dog and a folding chair, can't see out of my glasses, John has 3 folding chairs, my friend is dragging her 9 year old granddaughter and we can't find her car.  The cars were going every which every way so we couldn't tell where the aisle was that the car was in. 

Ok, now we're in the car, no one will let us out.  It's a one lane exit out of the park.  I'm the only one that went to the bathroom at the park because they had port-a-potties and it was 110 yesterday before the FESTIVITIES began.  Are you getting this picture?  It took us an hour to go 1/2 mile.  There was an accident on Carefree Highway.  The police were stopping cars to check for DUI's and everyone in our car but me and the dog had to go to the bathroom.  We got home 2 hours later and had to take a shower to get the mud off of us.  If I was 9, I bet I would have thought that was a good time.  The only thing I have left to say now is:

GOD BLESS AMERICA AND ALL THE MEN AND WOMEN IN THE ARMED FORCES WHO PROTECT US SO THAT WE CAN ENJOY FIREWORKS AND CORN DOGS.