Happy Independence to all free men and women around the world, and may we all, someday soon, be free!

Rudi, we don't make homemade ice cream, but we smoke salmon, grill steak and hamburgers, and have a big block party which includes, face-painting, a parade, pie eating contests, watermelon seed spitting contests, water balloon fights, three-legged races, eating, drinking, dancing (with and without sparklers) and general neighborhood merrymaking and revelry (for young and old alike) until dark, when we load up the vans and head down to the boat to watch the fireworks that they shoot of from a barge in Puget Sound.

This is one of my favorite holidays.

p.s. I learned on the 4th of July last year that it is not a good idea for old women to try to spin when they are dancing on the concrete wearing tennis shoes. Avoid this at all costs.