Re: Re: OT-What July Fourth Means to Me- Long!

I can see Theresa packing her bags now - LOL

Pam Evans
Kemp, TX
zone 8A
----- Original Message -----
From: Melody
Sent: 7/6/2004 9:51:37 PM
To: gardenchat@hort.net
Subject: Re: [CHAT] OT-What July Fourth Means to Me- Long!

> DF: Nah! That's an amazing thing here...as long as you are not into
> drugs, violence, pedophilia, pornography, prostitution, stealing from
> your neighbors, beating your wife or kids, foreclosing on your
> neighbor's farms, or other forms of extreme hell-raising, you are pretty
> much okay with us. Long as you don't go getting any fancy ideas of
> "growing" our town and making it like a bigger city... And trust me, I
> am the most outspoken person around here...well known for saying just
> what I mean and not taking any crap from anyone. If Hills can adjust to
> me, and they have, very well thank you, then they can take just about
> anything. I've never lived anywhere where I have ever felt such a sense
> of community and belonging. We're not perfect, not by any means, but we
> are sure close enough for me.
> 
> 
> 
> Melody, IA (Z 5/4)
> 
> "The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious."    
> --Albert Einstein
> 
>  --- On Wed 07/07, David Franzman < dfranzma@pacbell.net > wrote:
> From: David Franzman [mailto: dfranzma@pacbell.net]
> To: gardenchat@hort.net
> Date: Tue, 6 Jul 2004 22:13:56 -0700
> Subject: Re: [CHAT] OT-What July Fourth Means to Me- Long!
> 
> I need to live in a town like that! I miss ol' Norman Rockwell. I'm
> not<br>being sarcastic I really mean it. Course, I'd probably open my
> mouth and be<br>run out on a rail but hey the first 45 minutes would be
> great.<br><br>David Franzman<br>A Touch of the
> Tropics<br>www.atouchofthetropics.net<br>----- Original Message -----
> <br>From: "Melody" <mhobertm@excite.com><br>To:
> <gardenchat@hort.net><br>Sent: Tuesday, July 06, 2004 2:23
> AM<br>Subject: Re: [CHAT] OT-What July Fourth Means to Me-
> Long!<br><br><br>> Oh, I think depending on where you live, Jim, it is
> very close to the<br>> real thing. In our little town, 4th of July is a
> big, big deal. Things<br>> start happening the day before with an all
> day softball tournament that<br>> the entire town turns up at sooner or
> later. The local bar hosts a<br>> street dance with live bands that goes
> on all afternoon and half the<br>> night. Families hang out at the park
> all that day and the next,<br>> picnicking and playing. Relatives come
> to visit from out of town. Family<br>> parties happening all over the
> place. Loved ones home from the military<br>> are treated like royalty
> all over town. On the day of the fourth, people<br>> pick out their
> parking spots at the park early. The volunteer fire<br>> department
> starts early in the morning putting together the show for<br>> that
> night. For a town of less than 700 people, we spend an average of<br>>
> $12-15,000 dollars on fireworks, all paid for by volunteer
> donations.<br>> Half our volunteer fire department pay out of their own
> pockets to get<br>> licensed as pyrotechnicians. We have a parade that
> the entire town<br>> participates in, one way or another. Lots of
> floats, horses,<br>> politicians, candy, and best of all, fire trucks
> from as many<br>> communities around as can come (this year it was 8!)
> Then by 7 in the<br>> evening, there is usually somewhere in the
> neighborhood of a couple of<br>> thousand people milling around in town
> as people come from all over to<br>> see our fireworks. It literally
> stops the traffic a
> 
> ll up and down the<br>> highway. And it is always, always preceded by
> the singing of the<br>> National Anthem and the salute to the flag. It
> is a very patriotic deal<br>> here where many, many of our young folks
> are serving in the military and<br>> many of our older folks are
> veterans. This is not necessarily a time to<br>> reflect on all that is
> wrong with our country, but rather to remember<br>> that once upon a
> time, a few men changed the way they wanted to live and<br>> in so
> doing, founded a great nation of people who value independence and<br>>
> self-determination. I know of few people who would argue that in
> the<br>> USA, for th<br>><br>> ose who are willing to work at it, almost
> nothing is unattainable. The<br>> legend that Mr. Reagan chose to wrap
> those thoughts up in may not be any<br>> where close to the truth (what
> legends really are), but I can live with<br>> the sentiment underlying
> the words.<br>><br>><br>><br>> Melody, IA (Z 5/4)<br>><br>> "The most
> beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious."<br>> --Albert
> Einstein<br>><br>> --- On Sat 07/03, james singer < jsinger@igc.org >
> wrote:<br>> From: james singer [mailto: jsinger@igc.org]<br>> To:
> gardenchat@hort.net<br>> Date: Sat, 3 Jul 2004 17:38:54 -0400<br>>
> Subject: Re: [CHAT] OT-What July Fourth Means to Me- Long!<br>><br>>
> Interesting, but hardly the real thing.<br><br>On Saturday, July 3,<br>>
> 2004, at 10:41 AM, Donna wrote:<br><br>> This was posted on another<br>>
> list... Thought some might want to read<br>> it....<br>><br>>
> --------------------<br>><br>> What July Fourth Means to Me<br>> By<br>>
> Ronald Reagan<br>><br>> For one who was born and grew up in the
> small<br>> towns of the Midwest,<br>> there is a special kind of
> nostalgia about<br>> the Fourth of July.<br>><br>> I remember it as a
> day almost as<br>> long-anticipated as Christmas. This <br>> was<br>>
> helped along by the<br>> appearance in store windows of all kinds
> of<br>> fireworks and colorful<br>> posters advertising them with vivid
> pictures.<br>><br>> No later than<br>>
> 
> th
> e third of July -- sometimes earlier -- Dad would bring<br>> home
> what<br>> he felt he could afford to see go up in smoke and flame.
> We'd<br>> count<br>> and recount the number of firecrackers, display
> pieces and other<br>><br>> things and go to bed determined to be up with
> the sun so as to offer<br>> <br>> the<br>> first, thunderous notice of
> the Fourth of July.<br>><br>><br>> I'm afraid we didn't give too much
> thought to the meaning of the<br>> day.<br>> And, yes, there were tragic
> accidents to mar it, resulting<br>> from <br>> careless<br>> handling of
> the fireworks. I'm sure we're<br>> better off today with<br>> fireworks
> largely handled by<br>> professionals.<br>><br>> Yet there was a thrill
> never to be forgotten in<br>> seeing a tin can blown<br>> 30 feet in the
> air by a giant "cracker" --<br>> giant meaning it was about 4<br>>
> inches long. But enough of<br>> nostalgia.<br>><br>> Somewhere in our
> growing up we began to be aware of<br>> the meaning of days<br>> and
> with that awareness came the birth of<br>> patriotism. July Fourth is
> <br>> the<br>> birthday of our nation. I<br>> believed as a boy, and
> believe even more<br>> today, that it is the<br>> birthday of the
> greatest nation on earth.<br>><br>> There is a legend<br>> about the day
> of our nation's birth in the little <br>> hall<br>> in<br>>
> Philadelphia, a day on which debate had raged for hours. The
> men<br>><br>> gathered there were honorable men hard-pressed by a king
> who had<br>><br>> <br>> flouted<br>> the very laws they were willing to
> obey. Even so, to<br>> sign the<br>> Declaration of Independence was
> such an irretrievable act<br>> that the <br>> walls<br>> resounded with
> the words "treason, the<br>> gallows, the headsman's axe," <br>>
> and<br>> the issue remained in<br>> doubt.<br>><br>> The legend says
> that at that point a man rose and<br>> spoke. He is <br>> described<br>>
> as not a young man, but one who had to<br>> summon all his energy for
> an<br>> impassioned plea. He cited the<br>> grievances that had brought
> them to this<br>> moment and
> 
> finally, his<br>> voice falling, he said, "They may turn every<br>> tree
> into a gallows,<br>> every hole into a grave, and yet the words of
> that<br>> parchment can<br>> never die.<br>><br>> To the mechanic in the
> workshop, they will speak<br>> hope; to the slave in<br>> the mines,
> freedom. Sign that parchment. Sign<br>> if the next moment the<br>>
> noose is around your neck, for that<br>> parchment will be the textbook
> of<br>> freedom, the Bible of the rights<br>> of man forever."<br>><br>>
> He fell back exhausted. The 56 delegates,<br>> swept up by his
> eloquence,<br>> rushed forward and signed that document<br>> destined to
> be as immortal as a<br>> work of man can be. When they<br>> turned to
> thank him for his timely<br>> oratory, he was not to be found,<br>> nor
> could any be found who knew who he<br>> was or how he had come in
> or<br>> gone out through the locked and guarded<br>> doors.<br>><br>>
> Well, that<br>> is the legend. But we do know for certain that 56 men,
> a<br>> little<br>> band so unique we have never seen their like since,
> had pledged<br>><br>> their lives, their fortunes and their sacred
> honor. Some gave their<br>><br>> lives in the war that followed, most
> gave their fortunes, and all<br>><br>> preserved their sacred
> honor.<br>><br>> What manner of men were they?<br>> Twenty-four were
> lawyers and jurists,<br>> eleven were merchants and<br>> tradesmen, and
> nine were farmers. They were<br>> soft-spoken men of<br>> means and
> education; they were not an unwashed<br>> rabble. They had<br>> achieved
> security but valued freedom more. Their<br>> stories have not<br>> been
> told nearly eno<br>><br>> ug<br>>
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