July Fourth Week - Summer Break

 Summer break. Vacation. Hiatus. Laziness. Whatever you want to call it, I'm doing it. But I also wanted to celebrate July 4th week. So Happy Birthday America!

Fireworks, Picnics, Boating, Swimming, Dairy Queen, Croquet, Beach Volleyball, Driving,
Wimbledon (Thank you England), watermelon, s'mores, reading trash and blasting tunes. Ain't life grand?

Land of the Free and Home of the Brave.

God Bless America

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness

Thomas Jefferson went through many rewrites and critiques on his Declaration of Independence. Writers - take heart. Even brilliance has its critics. But today, July 4th, we celebrate his words and the many iterations of the United States of America. We are still dreamers and "We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness."

I enjoyed reading some quotes printed in the WSJ (6/26/10 p.W2) by our Founding Fathers.

Alexander Hamilton on Thomas Jefferson, "He is not scrupulous about the means of success, nor very mindful of truth, and ... he is a contemptible hypocrite."

John Adams on Alexander Hamilton, "The bastard brat of a Scotch pedlar."

Hamilton on Adams,"The man is more mad than I ever thought him, and I shall soon be led to say as wicked as he is mad."

Ben Franklin on John Adams,"He means well for his country, is always an honest man, often a wise one, but sometimes, and in some things, absolutely out of his senses."

Adams on Franklin," His whole life has been one continuous insult to good manners and to decency."

Thank goodness for those men and so many others through the years - for freedom of speech and opinion, for being hot and cranky in Philadelphia, and for cranking out the backbone writings of American history.

Happy 234th Independence Day!

(Note - Statue of Liberty picture taken by me late August 2001. We returned home from a NY trip on 9/1/01)

july fireworks preparation

Pristine pool. Glorious red, white, and blue. God Bless America.

Our trumpet vine has finally decided to blare - blast it's orange color. We keep it very contained on one fence. It is pernicious and tries to take hold everywhere. Tough, hardy, rather like Texans in July - refusing to fade in 100 degree heat. Wait, we've had a cold spell - only 90 yesterday. Guess it's been a tad steamy overseas at Wimbledon. I love watching grass court tennis. Go Roger Federer, the Swiss steamroller. And as of today, the Williams sisters are on their way to perhaps meeting in the final. Fireworks, indeed!

Yard art - thought this little wire flag was cool and could brighten our back corner.

I'm normally not allowed near a match, but I managed to light my sparklers without setting me or the yard or the house on fire. I wanted to set this up so I could then snap a picture. Had to work quickly, but the shot turned out okay. Sparklers are my favorite and I have a ton of them for this weekend. Also, some killer bees - they sounded cool when I bought them. Ray shall be in charge of that match!

Here's a little thought for the weekend courtesy of the late actress Tallulah Bankhead: Never practice two vices at once.

Happy 4th of July weekend!!!!

Joanne

Get a Bigger Gun

Makyla, age 7 months, is ready for the 4th of July. Here she's hanging out on Father's Day weekend. Doesn't care about cellulite. She's in charge of her float. Life is beautiful in 2009.

Whew! Over 100 degrees today - one week before July 4th weekend. Getting psyched for a 3 day weekend - some burgers, hot dogs. Gotta think about those old dudes in their stuffy clothes and powdered wigs - stuck at Independence Hall in Philly - a sweltering July (believe me, it can be humid and stuffy) - contemplating our freedom. Creating magnificent, eloquent words that will enthrall us forever. Read the Declaration of Independence..........

Summer in Texas means crape myrtles in full bloom. Gorgeous until they blow off the tree and into the pool. Then Ray curses nature because it kinda upsets his chemical balance. However, it does offer an Esther Williams moment - swimming up through a garden of blooms. Aaahhh - summertime.

Stars and stripes. Couldn't resist this little dish towel from Crate 'N Barrel. Yep, helped the economy today - movie, lunch, shopping. Vibrant colors. Bold design. Hooray for America - red, white, and blue.

Oh yeah..........definitely ready for the 4th of July. No little water pistol will do. This calls for the big gun. The monster water gun. This baby is dedicated to Ray's grandparents - they are gone but not forgotten. Here's to a memorable 4th. More to come! (Joanne goes crazy at the fireworks stand in Justin. Sparklers, gotta love the sparklers).

J