Another Fourth

Assuming that the evening's thunderstorms hold off, there'll be the usual massive fireworks display down on the Mall. In the days before getting to a good viewing spot involved going through a metal detector, bag check, and optional cavity search, my friends and I used to go down to the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and set up for an afternoon picnic so that we could get seats for the big show. We would pack huge amounts of fruit and drinks, the better to avoid the Park Service's outrageous vending prices, then blow our money anyway on Rocket Pops and frozen lemonade. If there was a large enough group, some of us would stay to guard the turf while others visited the nearby memorials (and the Lincoln's incredibly handy restrooms). After an endless wait, the sun would finally sink and the fireworks would glitter off the Reflecting Pool. The Metro back was always a mosh pit spiked with strollers, but if you were willing to stroll along the Potomac or just sit in the grass at Arlington Cemetery for a while, the crowds would shrink to a bearable point. Staying hydrated and sunscreened helped a lot. So did not having an overwhelmingly dictatorial administration, or does that sound bitter?

Enjoy the day. Grill something. Put up the flag, turn up the 1812 (but try not to laugh if it's one of the arrangements that uses a choir, who are--fun fact! not making this up at all!--singing "God save the czar" as the cannons roar), and cheer for the fireworks. Then tomorrow, remember that independence only lasts when you work for it.