h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've always liked the celebrations for Independence Day, because usually it's a happy holiday. Today...

I'm reminded that it's the Fourth of July, by all the heavy caliber illegal fireworks going off around my apartment -- which is not unusual, mind, but I was already a bit jumpy from a violent incident on the bus home from my SciFi convention.

People are just crazy, these days. Can we blame it on the economy?

OMG, it's like a war zone out there now! I'm going to go find the garden hose, just in case the roof catches on fire again!

Again?

Good grief. There are good reasons for fireworks to be illegal in crowded residential neighborhoods. Not that anyone seems to pay attention.

It turned out okay, the front house and my place are still intact. Whew!!

My friend P lives about 6 blocks from here; she used to tell me how out of control it is around here -- NOW I believe! Some idgit was shooting off those mega-boom rockets about 25 feet from here, in the back alley. Fortunately for ME, he was tending toward the furniture stores on the other side of the block.

[Icy: Yes, again! Small house fire in the front property, back in June. The workmen still aren't done with the repairs, after 6-7 weeks.]

Hyp, a question for you: Do you ever have incidents of folks shooting guns off, on holidays like New Year's and the 4th? It happens here all the time. I'm thinking folk in Little DooDah are smarter than that.

I've never heard of anyone here doing that, but I've had experience with it other places. Lord C, I'm sorry to say, always shot one of his deer rifles into the air on New Year's Eve. When I commented about it I was told that since they were in the country it didn't matter. I guess bullets shot into the sky in the country just continue on to the moon or something. I imagine my niece's husband does the same. And probably my nephew. The nut seldom falls far from the tree.

A real tragedy happened in San Antonio when I lived there. A young girl (7, I think) was killed sitting in her grandmother's yard by a bullet that literally fell from the sky. No one ever found out who or where the shooter was. All they could get was a general direction.

It is an incredibly stupid, thoughtless act.

In considering how populated this part of Los Angeles is, I'm surprised we don't have more incidents like the one you describe; it's only been fatal a few times since I've been here. Once is much more than enough, though! The police make an issue about not firing in the air every holiday, but it still happens. It would help if every American holiday weren't associated with alcohol, though.

That bothers me, too. Why can't people have a good time sober? There's something wrong, there.