July 4th Recap

Hot days here in MN makes for some lazy days. While hubby was busy queing, I decided to keep him company in the garage. We got a couple of chairs, brought out the chips and salsa, and sat in the burning sun drinking some Smirnoffs.

Funny sidenote about that...hubby and I haven't drank up in a long time. We've been down that road of consuming way too much alcohol at the clubs and yes, those nights at Miyakes doing sake bombs were just hilariously fun. After a while, it just got old. After my last major birthday party at,noneother than, Miyakes, I swore off drinking "like that" ever again. And I've stuck to it, too! Since then, we've become social drinkers at best. My tolerance level has decreased dramatically. I used to be proud of the fact that I was able to hold my alcohol down and be able to "one up" even some dudes when it came to how many drinks we could consume. But those days are over. 'Tis one of those "been there, done that" deals...not to say that I won't do a shot here and there! Lol! Anyways, it must've been a combination of the heat, humidity, and lack of food, but after quickly downing one bottle of Smirnoff, hubby disappeared inside. I baked in the sun for a bit until I realized that he'd been gone for a bit. When I checked in on him, he was on the couch and his face was completely red! It was just too funny! And all off one bottle...boy, things sure have changed from back in the day!

Anyways, we ate our barbeque and settled in to watch a rerun of BET's Music Awards. At around 9:30pm, hubby asks if I'm still down to watch the fireworks over in Minneapolis. (note: by this time, hubby was fine...no more red face!) By the time we get to Minneapolis, we find parking, and start heading towards the Stone Arch Bridge. Not surprisingly, it's packed liked sardines! Hordes of people lined the bridge with chairs, coolers, blankets, etc, and by the time we found a decent spot to stand, the show began. Ten minutes later, it was done. Even though it was short, the fact that it was right on the Mississippi River made it beautiful. Plus, the surrounding area full of old warehouse buildings made for some very dramatic echoes of the fireworks. Ten minutes later, the hordes of people were like a mass of cattle inching their way off the bridge. By the time we got to the car, on the freeway, and back home, it wasn't even 11pm. In and out, saw the fireworks, got home. End of story.

Hubby and I did reminisce about our past July 4th though. One of our favorite July 4ths was the time we went to Mountain View's Shoreline Amphitheater two years in a row and listened to the San Francisco Symphony. While I am so in love with listening to the strings section, nothing can quite compare to watching the fireworks with a symphony as its accompaniment. The patriotic music along with the fireworks show directly overhead never fails to make you feel proud. And yes, it's also very romantic, too. I think music would've made this year's show 100x better, but hey, it was still cool.

Now I can say that I've watched the July 4th fireworks on the Stone Arch Bridge above the Mississippi. Supposedly, it's THE thing to do here.

Taste of Minnesota

I completely forgot to mention this festival that hubby and I went to last week. It's probably the second largest festival that Minnesotans look forward to attending each year...the first being the annual Minnesota State Fair. Taste of MN is basically where restaurants come out from all over the Midwest set up booths so people can get their grub on. The specialties usually include turkey drumsticks, ribs galore, and cheese curds. Cheese curds, in my opinion, just doesn't sound appetizing. Of course there's the basic burgers and hot dogs, but not all without having the prices of anything totally jacked up. Then of course you have your basic carnival rides (run by prison convicts), cotton candy, booths selling everything from Pampered Chef products to incense and temporary tattoos.

In all honesty, I don't see what the big deal is. I mean, I can see why everyone flocks to it every year simply because it's an excuse to enjoy the beautiful hot weather. It's the time for the short shorts to come out of the closets and for everyone to show off the bodies they've been hiding since winter. But everything is too pricey, it's too freakin' hot, it's totally crowded, and since it was my first time on Harriet Island, I realized that it was just too damn close to the Mississippi. It may be mighty and great, but the smell is nothing to brag about. After about an hour of walking around, we headed home...but at least we can say that we've been to one! Hahah, if you haven't noticed, we're just trying to make sure that we partake of Minnesotan tradition around here...and so far, most of the things that we've done once, we're pretty sure we probably wouldn't do again. It just takes two words to remind us: Ice Palace. Ugh. Don't ask.