Independence Day Responsibilities

I realize this is long after the fact, but I hope everyone had a nice Independence Day. We had a fun time, made all the more enjoyable by the fact that the early part of the day, the parade, went by without a hitch. This is significant due to the fact that I somehow or another (I can never remember how these things happen) was cajoled into being the Grand Marshal (GM), whatever that means.

Actually, I know exactly what it means. Basically, I’m in charge of making sure the parade runs smoothly, which means getting there early and telling everyone where they should be. The previous GM, JM, is the big man on campus, and just perfect for the job. He is, however, over-extended, and somehow thought I should do the job. Foolishly, I said yes, because the reality is, it’s an amazing parade, and we’re lucky to have it. In fact, the Boston Globe said it was one of the top summer events in New England. How can you not want to help?

Naturally this put a damper on my mood as the day approached, because I was told that people would be contacting me to get a place in the parade. On the actual day, JM said the parade runs itself, and I had RS and BS there to help, so I wasn’t alone. Plus, it’s just a parade, right? Yeah, right.

Either way, it went fine, we started on time, and things went smoothly except for a small hitch with the horses, who nobody wants to walk behind. I can’t say I blame them. I was greatly relieved, and once that last float went by, I could finally relax and enjoy the day. The weather turned out to be beautiful, and everyone had fun with friends and family. The one big downer was that a huge storm rolled in by evening time, so they had to cancel the fireworks, sort of. I learned that they have to set the fireworks off once they're set up, so they blew them off, but it was pouring rain. People all went home, but R and the kids piled into the car and sat in the car and watched from the parking lot. I stayed at home and relaxed. Needless to say, it was Miller Time.

Now I have another 364 days before I have to worry about the next parade. I can't wait.

Until then, thanks for reading, and thanks to Sherman Health for the pic.