4th of July Barbecue and Fireworks
The Fort Vancouver fireworks show holds the acclaim, "The best show west of the Mississippi". While I tend to doubt that is true, it is indeed a great display. My friend Big Dave invited us to meet him yesterday at the park to see the fireworks. Keeping this invite in mind, I went to my parents house in Portland for a barbecue and relaxation.
The barbecued chicken was quite delicious, and there were plenty of sides to pack in as well. I was stuffed at the end. It was borderline too hot yesterday, but one can't complain. There is a fine line between perfect weather and excessive heat. My idea of a perfect day is clear skies, very slight breeze and 70 to 75 degrees. Others would prefer a more extreme temperature.
After a debate whether or not it was worth battling traffic and parking, we all decided to head up to Fort Vancouver to see the fireworks. My friend, his sister, niece and friends were already at the park. We used the advanced cell phone technology to meet up amid the streams and globs of people. Big Dave and I peppered a volleyball for a while, as it was still light when we arrived at 8:00 pm. It's interesting to note that I am not really interested in most sports but very much enjoy a specific genre of activities that resembles sports. I really enjoy juggling a soccer ball and peppering with a volleyball. For those who don't know what either is: juggling a soccer ball involves using your body (mostly legs) to hit the ball, keeping it in the air as long as possible. Peppering is similar except it involves 2 or more people who pass a volleyball back and forth using legal volleyball hits such as bumps, sets and spikes. After quickly realizing how horribly out of shape I am, Dave and I joined the others in our wait for the big show.
Unfortunately the park wherein the majority of spectators position themselves is riddled with trees. It is difficult to find a spot where the fireworks are not partially hidden behind an obstacle. Our place was not the best, and half of the show was obscured. Nonetheless, it was worth the trip in my estimation, and our Brazilian guests enjoyed it. I can't imagine having guests from another country on the 4th of July without showing them this interesting American tradition. We got all the important elements in: barbecue, relaxation and fireworks.
By the way, I'm not really into a bunch of moving, flashing stuff on web pages. But since this is a BLOG, I have to make it fun and friendly. I'm not too worried about perfect design and images in such an instance as this, so don't complain!