The Festival of Light and Rain

And now! For the grand event!

The day dawned especially early and bright as I took Nate and Jamar to the bus station at 5:50 am. It was another gorgeous day. Hating the mass transit debacle of the 3rd, we drove into town and miraculously scored a parking spot on Newbury street.

It's tradition in my family to have a photo taken right outside the Quincy Market. Here we are, they who are left.







This colonial photo is perhaps one of the worst photos of the trip, but we all laughed so hard, that it's a mandatory post. Things to note: Dave's "too small bathrobe coat", Joe's colonial ponytail, and Nat's "I want to die" face. (Do you SEE what happens when I don't open-mouth smile?!) We're the group who's mad their mom made them do this.

After lunch in Quincy Market, we met up with Colleen, Rachel, and Peggy to see Transformers at the theater right on the Common. It was a rockin' summer blockbuster. Some parts were rather cheesy, but it's amazing what they can do with CGI, computers, graphics, etc. these days. It was loud, and pretty clever. Shia LaBeouf is funny--I fully support him being this generation's Tom Hanks.


Somewhere between 2:30 and 5:30, the weather turned sour. The sky darkened, the clouds rolled in, and it started to rain.

Seeking both shelter and food, we headed for a secret CPK down this back alley. (Kudos to Rachel/Colleen who knew where this gem was!) Kylee and I do our best "It's raining but we're going to try and make the most of it" poses. We asked that guy with the yellow messenger bag to stand right there. Artistic, isn't it?






After eating, we caught up with some other people in our ward and braved 4 hours of darkening sky and rain for the fireworks.

Despite the rain, there were thousands of people all up and down and in the Charles River. We sat on the Cambridge side of the river almost exactly across from where they shot off the fireworks.

Here's our view pre-fireworks.

While we waited, mostly standing, the Connect Four board came out. Surprise surprise. I'm glad I can be the keeper of the CF board, because I'm definitely not very good. Nate and Rachel are the best M/F players. Not ever sure if they faced off though...

This is Dave, Joe and I. Photo entitled: "Oreo Cookie."

The Pops begin their concert. The rain stops; umbrellas come down. The wind starts. The rain starts; umbrellas open. People are dancing and singing and trying to stay warm. John "Cougar" Mellencamp performs again and we take votes on who we would like to perform in his stead. The Killers, AC/DC, Faith Hill & Tim McGraw, The Beach Boys... basically anyone but the Coug. My vote went to Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine. How FUN would they have been? "rhythm is gonna getchoo, rhythm is gonna getchoo..."


The Pops play on. Kylee joins us. I had no hair tie and it looks like I'm right out of the shower. Luckily, everyone looks about the same. Joe and I have the same bangs. Rachel has her bag stripped off--the crowds are getting rowdy.













Finally. Never had we been more excited to see fireworks. They. Were. AWESOME. Your standard fireworks times 100, plus smiley faces, stars, happy faces, numbers, chasers, and a generally amazing display of brilliance. It's something you have to see to believe. The rain was a pain, but it made it a truly memorable experience.



So now my boys are gone. All of them. It's back to sharing my room space with just me. As nice as it will be to have some sense of order back to my life, it is both bittersweet and melancholy. Most of us haven't lived in close proximity in two years, but it's a miracle how quickly you can fall back into patterns of familiarity and trust. Closing this on a sappy, nostalgic, sentimental note, I had a most fantastic vacation and will bask in the glow that comes with being 100% comfortable among friends for some time.