First of July

I helped out at neowolf's dad's fireworks show again this year, and this time we didn't get rained out. Last year it was so depressing because we put so much work into everything only to have a storm roll in right before the show and drench the place. We were running around like crazy people trying to salvage what we could and get to shelter before one of us got hit by lightning or something.

This year though there wasn't a cloud in the sky. It was hot and did I mention that it was hot? But it was still fun. We worked hard and got to take a break and drive back into town to let Toula out and play with her a bit before we picked up lunch for everyone. It was a welcome break and saved me from a probably very major headache.

The scariest part of the day was not when we were loading the 8" and 10" shells, though you might have thought it would be. No, it the scariest part was when we were putting foil over the mortars to keep sparks from setting off other fireworks. I was standing on the opposite side of a trailer from another guy who was helping out when neowolf stepped on the back end. The entire thing tipped suddenly and I literally thought I was going to die for a split second. It was disorienting more than anything, but when you're standing on a trailer full of explosives anything unexpected is enough to send your adrenaline through the roof. I felt a little sick to my stomach at the time, but we all laughed about it afterward--when we were away from the fireworks. ;)

The show went off with only a few hitches. Some of the fireworks were rescued from last year and acted a little strangely when they went off, including the one I was responsible for firing. The pond cake was on a little raft in the middle of the pond and it was on fire for most of the show. We didn't realize why until afterward. Apparently it set the raft on fire and by the end there was absolutely nothing left. But it looked pretty awesome during the show. I was also responsible for running the disco lights during the Chicago medley and that was a lot of fun. I honestly did very little, but they looked really cool.

It was a lot of work and a lot of fun. And boy did that shower feel good afterward. I swear I had an inch of grime, sweat and suntan lotion on my skin by the end of the day. Ewww...