When I was a sprout, I was the biggest pyromaniac in the county. I used to spend hours emptying Black Cats to make bigger louder firecrackers. Blew up frogs, ant hills, cans, bottles, made various bottle rocket guns, tied all kinds of fireworks onto rockets, put those muffler booby traps they used to make for people’s cars. When we got older we had bottle rocket wars and when we got cars we took our fireworks to the street. I got a ticket and had to go see the mayor when I was 16 for a ticket I got for ‘throwing firewiorksfrom a vehicle’. I asked the mayor to see the city ordinance against it and he threatened my smart ass with upgrading it to careless driviing. I was at least smart enuf to shut up at that point.
I guess I grew out of it or grew tired of it. My buddy Keith never has. He does a huge fireworks show for his family every year and orders his stuff wholesale. The markup on fireworks is stupendous. MY son had some friends whose grandparents made most of their annual income off of a coupe of weeks of a fireworks stand they put up every year.
Two things I’ve noticed this year. There is a fireworks shortage and no shortage of complainers. My town has an ordinance against them in city limits but that has never stopped people from shooting them here. Nowadays, people are bitching their heads off because of people shooting them. I guess I knew it was illegal but it never bothered me that people did shoot them. They say it terrifies their dogs but mine barely lift their heads. I guess its true because there is a rash of missing dogs every fourth of July.

whichever it it for you I hope you have a good 4th this year! with family nd friends the way its supposed to be! Have fun!
But don’t be a curudgeon like Jimmy and his fraidy cats.

BKB