I'll be over here, not having a national holiday...

[deird_lj]

You know, it's occurred to me that, other than fireworks, I have no idea what Americans do on the 4th of July.

With other American holidays, I'd say I know pretty much what to expect, but TV doesn't get produced during July, so I'm left without much to go on. And the only American movie featuring the 4th of July is Independence Day - which I'm assuming isn't typical.

So... fireworks.
Anything else?

Well, have fun, anyway! *waves imaginary flag*




In other news, I have four stories I really should be writing, and absolutely no ideas for any of them, because the remix has taken over my brain.
Which I really wouldn't mind so much, but I'm not actually getting my remix written, either...

Comments

[empresspatti.livejournal.com]

Basically, it an American's patriotic duty to kick back, have a beer, toss a frizbee or baseball and grill hamburgers. Parades, concerts or family gatherings at the pool are also popular.

Independence should be celebrated by spending a day in the sun, not even thinking about how lucky you are.....

[deird1]

And who does the fireworks?

[lavastar.livejournal.com]

Either you do it yourself (illegally) in your backyard, as my neighbors are currently doing very loudly, or you go to see an official fireworks display put on by a city near you.

[padawanspider.livejournal.com]

Only illegal if one is in city limits (as far as I know)...

[lavastar.livejournal.com]

Hmm. Yeah, I'm not very familiar with fireworks laws, so you could be right.

[empresspatti.livejournal.com]

Lots of communities have fireworks - usually hosted by the local government. Also - private country clubs, etc often have firework displays.

Lots of stories this year about communities not having fireworks because of the expense during tough budget times. Luckily I live near DC so I 1) always have fireworks and 2) always have them broadcasted by the local television station. I can watch them in air conditioned comfort if I want to avoid the crowds.

[lavastar.livejournal.com]

Mostly, people hold barbecues. Because eating meat is patriotic. Also it's a chance to drink beer.

As you can see, Fourth of July is mostly a manly holiday. *eyeroll*

Nah, mostly you go to a party and see friends and eat and are like "Look, it's a holiday in summer! This doesn't happen that much! Hooray!"

I speak hypothetically, of course, since all I'm doing is sitting around at my house. :D


I was actually meaning to ask how your remix was going, out of sympathy - but now I see I probably shouldn't. (And, wow, what are all these other stories you have to write?)

But I know what you mean about it taking over your brain. I think I've read the fic I'm remixing, oh, 700 billion times? *headdesk*

[deird1]

*can out-barbecue the men any day*


My remix is INSANE. Why on earth did I ever sign up for this?! *kicks story*
(Is yours going okay?)

Other stories include joss_las, and something vaguely opera-themed for still_grrr. Among others.

[lavastar.livejournal.com]

*can out-barbecue the men any day*

Hee! I can, um, eat barbecue...

My remix is INSANE. Why on earth did I ever sign up for this?! *kicks story*

Awww. Hope that works out - but I know you, you say this about every story. It'll be great. :P

(Is yours going okay?)

It...actually kind of is. I'm very, very worried that it won't be as good as I want it to be, but I've sent it off to my beta, and I'll probably do a lot of editing of my own, and - it's basically in shape. I'm just incredibly nervous about it. *sigh*

Other stories include [info]joss_las, and something vaguely opera-themed for [info]still_grrr. Among others.

Ah. I forgot about joss_las, cause for some crazy reason I got an idea immediately and turned it in awhile ago. O.O

[angearia.livejournal.com]

My remix is INSANE. Why on earth did I ever sign up for this?! *kicks story*
(Is yours going okay?)

Oh, god. Don't say the R word. Or actually do. I need to finish it. Eep.

[taiba.livejournal.com]

Isn't there a big parade with floats and giant balloon people? I remember seeing something about it on Seinfeld once.

[a2zmom.livejournal.com]

That's the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. Now that's a parade!

[marinarusalka.livejournal.com]

Basically, July 4th is the day for cookouts and picnics. Also, any sport that can be played on a backyard lawn.

I'm pretty sure there's more hamburgers and hot dogs consumed in the US on July 4 than on any other day of the year.

[klme.livejournal.com]

forgive my Australian ignorance, but what's a cookout?

[marinarusalka.livejournal.com]

A meal cooked (and usually eaten) outside. Tends to involve meat on a grill.

[powerofthebook.livejournal.com]

Hmmm...today I covered about six events. Most of them were local parades where people dress up floats or ride in fire engines. One had a large used-book sale and a town picnic at a service club. Another town had a traditional "Fun Run" - quick heats for the kids and a five-miler for adults. In other places, local bands and orchestras play outside while crowds wait for the fireworks show to begin.

My personal favorite to cover today was a Rubber-Duckie Race. There's a river that bisects the town and flows quickly into a lake. People "adopt" a duck for a fee. Nearly 4,000 made their way into the lake - the adopter of the first duck into the lake won $1,000 (uncertain how much that would be in your currency). The rest of the funds raised were donated to charity. Many local events are for charities and service organizations.

[cynicalshadows.livejournal.com]

Fireworks, beer, BBQs, and watermelon. That's about it. :D

[neutralalienist.livejournal.com]

Sometimes there are picnics.

I have not even started my remix yet. /slaps self

[padawanspider.livejournal.com]

Well, I ate a barbecue po-boy (basically a submarine sandwich - or hoagie - or whatever you might happen to call them. Sandwich on a 15 to 30 cm length of French bread.) for breakfast. And as far as festivities are concerned, that's about as patriotic as I got.

Other than that, pretty much just intermittently reflected on our freedoms and what it took to get there, and took care of various errands that needed running. :)

[a2zmom.livejournal.com]

parade, bbq and laze about. Not necessarily in that order.

[mabus101.livejournal.com]

We didn't even get our official fireworks tonight. A pair of thunderstorms struck. Bah.

In defiance of the storms, many people set off backyard fireworks. May or may not be legal--I'm not sure.

[rebcake.livejournal.com]

Watermelon, corn-on-the-cob, potato salad, lemonade, grilling, and red-white-n-blue bunting! One year, an aunt made an American flag out of strawberries, blueberries and whipped cream. Pretty funny. Seasonal, local produce will be used everywhere. Rubarb is one local delicacy.

This is also my dad's birthday, so he is forced to wear a sequined stars-n-stripes top hat while we all sing "Happy Birthday". He grew up thinking the fireworks were for him, so it's kind of amazing that he turned out as well as he did.

Sparklers are great kid-sized light displays. Write your name before the spark stops burning your retina! In San Francisco, home fireworks are illegal, but here in Portland you can buy them at the grocery store. They also have a Blues Festival over the long weekend, and the festival attendees have a great view of the municipal fireworks from the riverbank. Usually in SF, the fog obscures much of the official fireworks, but we have so many displays at the ballpark during other times of the year, that it's not a huge dispointment when it happens.

It's one of the best holidays, because it doesn't involve gifts or dead people. You can spend it with family or friends, no pressure, and you can do multiple activities without hurting peoples feelings. Plus, blow stuff up! So American!

[roccondilrinon.livejournal.com]

Sounds like what we down under do for Christmas. Which makes sense, as it's the same time of year seasonally speaking.

[padawanspider.livejournal.com]

Barbecue for a hot Christmas... somehow that makes the idea of a summer-Christmas so much easier to, um, swallow. Neat!