Every year to celebrate the Fourth of July, Anderson puts on a Midnight Parade on July 3rd. I thought it was such a good idea, and Stephen and I decided to go. We were surprised at how hard it was to find a parking spot at midnight! We ended up parking several blocks away and walking to the parade route. A midnight event attracts a certain segment of the population–mostly teens and college kids. The parade included some Marines, war veterans, fire engines, ambulances, lots of hometown queens (like “Little Miss Glass” from the nearby Glass Festival), election floats, a marching band, etc. It was crazy to watch the parade go by and realize that Amy, Stephen’s sister, was in it! She was just walking in support for our congressman, but we didn’t expect to see her! Eventually all the smoke, sirens, and loud music got to me, but it was fun to experience!

For the Fourth, we were invited to a picnic at a friends’ house where we ate, played volleyball, football, catch phrase, sang songs (I played my dulcimer too!), and watched fabulous fireworks. What a switch from last year when Stephen spent Independence Day in the Clemson Physics Lab writing his thesis! Ugh!

We’re getting ready for our week’s vacation in Utah. I can’t wait! We’ll visit Bryce Canyon, Zion National Park, and St. George–where I taught last year. It will be great to see lots of friends and the beautiful red rocks of Utah. Indiana tends to be monotonous after a year in Utah.