Fourth of July

7/1/2014

In case you haven't been in a store lately, which is unlikely, or seeing all the special "4th" sales on furniture, appliances, televisions and you name it, then you must be living under a rock.  Jeff and I went to WalMart yesterday for our weekly shopping, and there were "4th" decorated cookies and cupcakes.  In the parking lot, there was someone selling fireworks.  The boys are grown so there is no need for fireworks at my house now.  

When the boys were young, we did buy fireworks, some that burst into the air, others that skittered on the ground like snakes (the boys really liked those), and of course no celebration would be complete without sparklers.  Even as an adult I enjoy swirling the sparklers and watching the different patterns you can make just by moving your hand.

You know me, off to the Internet to do my research and here's what I found.  Some of the facts were surprising to me:

• The annual revenue of fireworks is $940 Million  
• The sale of fireworks breaks down to:
• 32% firecrackers
• 15% fire rockets
• 10% sparklers 
• There are approximately 9,000 injuries on the 4th
• A quarter of a billion pounds of fireworks are sold each year, with only 10% being used by professional pyrotechnics 
• 15,500 fires in 2010

Who puts on the best 4th of July show?

• Macy's 4th of July in New York. More than 2 Million spectators, more than 40,000 shells 
• Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular; and finally
• The National Mall, Washington DC

 Even though we live just a short distance from DC, sitting on the lawn, riding a crowded metro and having to use icky portable toilets, just isn't our cup of tea.  We can record the whole thing on Tivo while we sit comfortable on the sofa, drink our beverage of choice and munch on popcorn.  And with the Tivo, we can pause the show when we need to use our "in door plumbing"!

Regardless of how you celebrate, enjoy the show, because who doesn't like watching things go boom or pop in the air!

P