July 4, 2009

Texan Fourth of July is quite a bit more of a to-do than in Portland. The only other place that I've seen people celebrate Independence day with such vavoom was in Vancouver when we lived on the waterfront. And at people there took it as free license to get as drunk as possible and shoot fireworks at each other.

Our block turned into party central, but not the type that I expected considering the large number of college kids that live near us. People set up big awning and tents and held family gatherings. You could almost smell the ice tea and mint. Every real Texan has a huge barbecue made out of old oil drums that they stuff with charcoal and slow cook a beef brisket all day long. I really do mean all day long. The men get up at about 6:00am to start the fire, and no one eats until almost 7:00pm. There must have been over a hundred cars lining our narrow street, but there was no rowdiness or profligate partying. Instead it was a down home, southern celebration. Great-grandmas sat in rickety chairs sipping their ice teas and lemonades while grandchildren found buckets and hoses and water for their entertainment.

We spent a quiet afternoon since the guys were up all night working, but I rolled them out of bed at around 4:30 so that we could go to the George Bush Museum and Library. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I figured 3 adults could handle and protect 3 kids if things got out of hand.

The day stretched into a long, sultry sunset...