I hate holidays on which people shoot off fireworks. They do it for the whole week leading up to the date, and it drives the dogs (and me) insane.
Posted by Tante Shvester (Member # 8202) on :
Dang Chinese New Year!
Posted by Tstorm (Member # 1871) on :
Yup. It's that time of year. Wyandotte County, just north of me, has legal fireworks. My county doesn't. Just look north any evening, from the 1st to the 4th, and you'll get a nice view of all the private shows.
Posted by Megan (Member # 5290) on :
heehee
Funny, never noticed much of a problem around then...must be the area I'm living in.
On the other hand, the family immediately behind us and to our right is shooting them off (practically in our backyard), as well as many other families around the neighborhood. I hope nobody burns anything down.
</curmudgeon>
Posted by Megan (Member # 5290) on :
Mainly, I just wish they'd stop so that the dogs would calm down and I could go to bed.
Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
I'm with you. Smokey alternates from ignoring them completely to going berzerk. Quite annoying.
Posted by Tante Shvester (Member # 8202) on :
Maybe you need some Doggie Downers for your pups.
Posted by Megan (Member # 5290) on :
Hmm. I would need to know what was in them before I would even consider giving them to my pups.
And, maybe people should just quit shooting off fireworks in residential areas!
adam, it isn't legal to shoot them off here, either, but people do it anyway. It's one of those "victimless" crimes.
Posted by Jeni (Member # 1454) on :
If you don't set them off in residential areas, where are you supposed to go with them? I highly doubt it's legal to go into a park with them without a permit. Besides, it's only one week out of the year, and setting off at-home fireworks is way more fun than going to a show.
Posted by Megan (Member # 5290) on :
I think, though I'm not positive, that Indiana has designated areas for it.
It is most certainly NOT one week out of the year; it's every SINGLE holiday that could even vaguely involve fireworks. New Years and July 4 are just the worst weeks.
And maybe it's "way more fun," but it's also "way more dangerous" and "way more rude," in my opinion, to be firing off fireworks all night when you've got neighbors. These people's "fun" could cause house or grass fires, and it's keeping me up.
Posted by Kayla (Member # 2403) on :
Here, I'm having fun playing a game I call, "Fireworks or Thunder?"
Sometimes you can tell it was thunder. Sometimes its definitely fireworks. Some of them I haven't been able to tell.
Of course, a bit hint is whether or not the power goes out right before hand. That's only happened 3 times so far.
Posted by Tstorm (Member # 1871) on :
Hehe. I was doing the same thing, Kayla!
The bright flashes are almost always lightning, so it's fairly easy to tell.
Posted by Peek (Member # 7688) on :
ok dudes seriously. whats the big deal with fireworks? have you not seen the light of goodness? fireworks are pretty for a reason. they remind those good dudes and dudettes of how lucky we are to be alive and able to see and set them off. they also show those bad dudes and dudettes that its time to see the light and just relax for a few days out of the year. use it as a reminder dudette of how good it is to be able to see such pretty thingys in the world instead of complaining how it ruins your beauty sleep for what, 5 nights total? just chill dudes, youve seem to forgotten that its all good and that peeky is watching over your shoulders making sure you stay true to the dew.
Yeah.
Dude peekaboo
Posted by Kayla (Member # 2403) on :
Dudette, some people are freak out by fireworks simply because they've been around artillery in battle and the memories of those sounds are not pleasant. Same thing with some who've been around gun violence.
And animals always freak out because they have the good sense to know that those sounds generally mean death.
I'm happy you enjoy the 4th and all, and it is a patriotic day, but it's always bugged me that they stick veterans in parades and then set off fire works. Some of those guys jump and flinch with every sound. It's just rude.
Posted by Peek (Member # 7688) on :
thats a good point dudette but do remember who i was directing my goodness psa at. megan. i think what youre saying is good and all but i dont think megan is a veteran. she just doesnt see the goodness. another thingy most dudes and dudettes do not know, is why we have fireworks. when we won our all good independence, we didnt have phones so the main floaty boat shot off flares to show the other boats and brave soliders that we had won. pretty fireworks are a symbol of our freedom and to remember those good souls who gave their lives so we could repeat the flares and make it a tradition. i think dudes who actually know what fireworks are shot off for, learn to appreciate their goodness. it also tweeks peeky off when people dont know the story of the fireworks and think they are patriotic shooting them off without knowing why. so the messege is, enjoy the goodness remembering those whos lives were changed when they saw "the first" fireworks. the thoughts were the same then as they are now, wow are we freaking lucky we made it through alive. so give it up for goodness and also for dew.
Yeah.
Dude peekaboo
Posted by Kayla (Member # 2403) on :
Dude, do the dew.
You've been missed on this side peek. Nice to see you every once in a while.
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
We're gonna go blow stuff up tomorrow! YEE-HAW!
(I am NOT a Texan! I'm just a pyro!) Posted by Shigosei (Member # 3831) on :
Apparently two of my dad's cousins once heard that an M-80 can still go off underwater. They decided to test this theory by putting it in a bucket of water. Apparently the bucket was turned inside out.
So, kids, don't play with any firework that starts with M and ends with a number. This has been a public service announcement from the People Who Want Everyone Else Not To Lose Body Parts Needlessly.
As I get older, I enjoy fireworks less and less. They're too loud, some of them are too bright, and they're not all *that* pretty. Goodness gracious, I'm getting crotchety at the ripe old age of 20.
Posted by Troubadour (Member # 83) on :
You should't live in Sydney if you don't like fireworks. It's like an obsession there. Ever since the 2000 Olympics fireworks get shot off for every inconsequential thing in the political calendar.
Posted by Shigosei (Member # 3831) on :
Hawaii is pretty bad, too. They sell firecrackers in strings of 10,000 for New Year's Eve. And they ALL get set off at midnight. It's loud, it's smoky, and the streets get covered with red paper.
Posted by quidscribis (Member # 5124) on :
quote:when we won our all good independence, we didnt have phones so the main floaty boat shot off flares to show the other boats and brave soliders that we had won. pretty fireworks are a symbol of our freedom and to remember those good souls who gave their lives so we could repeat the flares and make it a tradition.
So*. Because I don't live in the U. S. of A. I don't have to put up with silly fireworks. Good to know.
Here, fireworks are used indiscriminantly on every Poya day (Buddhist holiday - full moon), when there are weddings, when there are funerals, and when there are holidays of any kind.
When the really important Buddhist events happen, there's usually a loud parade. Procession? Yeah, I think procession is more accurate. With banging of really loud drums, and chanting, and singing, and dancing. And fireworks. And this procession goes down every neighborhood street, sometimes several times in a night. At some time between, oh, 1 am and 5 am. Several times.
Did I mention the loud drums? And the fireworks?
Did I mention it wakes me up?
Did I mention that I can hear them approaching for half an hour before they actually arrive at my house, and for another half hour before they're finally far enough away that I can sleep again?
Do I really have to spell out just how much I hate fireworks? And drums?
Posted by Annie (Member # 295) on :
I live about 40 miles from a reservation. Not that there's really too much that you can't get anywhere else in Montana, but in the reservations, there are no holds barred.
God bless the sovereign nations. Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
I wouldn't mind if people would do the following:
1) Wait until the actual holiday to set the things off.
2) Do it in a safe and sane manner. Setting off rockets in a residential neighborhood full of 100 year-old wooden houses seems like a colossally stupid idea, even if we HAVE had a lot of rain lately.
Posted by Megan (Member # 5290) on :
Bob, you took the words right out of my mouth.
I don't live in a neighborhood full of 100-year-old wooden houses, but I do live in a neighborhood with lots of relatively dry grass.
And, I do seriously wish that it could just be for one night, and not the whole week. I like peace and quiet, and so do my dogs. Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
I hate a parade, and I hate fireworks. The 4th of July is my least favorite holiday.
I also wonder how people who have lived through war feel about fireworks. They scare me.
Posted by Telperion the Silver (Member # 6074) on :
I LOVE fireworks!!
My Dad and I still go down to Ohio and the Phantom Firework warehouse to buy the fireworks that our dear government decided that adults were too stupid to use anymore. I love the big boomers! My Dad also built a cannon out of pipe which we call Loud Mouth. We fill it up with gunpowder (blackpowder?), light the fuse, and RUN!
I'm going to a firework party tonight in fact. My friend Maria has about $200 worth of goodies.
Posted by Peek (Member # 7688) on :
such humbugs. peeky is powerless.
yeah
dude :uncool: peekaboo
Posted by Rappin' Ronnie Reagan (Member # 5626) on :
Maybe if you had a dog who literally shook with fear whenever fireworks were set off you'd feel differently.
Posted by Telperion the Silver (Member # 6074) on :
We had cats... and I don't think they were freaked much at all. If they were they would just come inside.
Posted by Telperion the Silver (Member # 6074) on :
Peek, I think you're right on!
Posted by Allegra (Member # 6773) on :
As long as the fireworks stop before eleven or so they don't bother me. I do think that more people should take advantage of the firework displays that are put on locally. There is a big one tonight by the stadium at IU. They spend millions of dollars and it is free to watch. I can see how setting of fireworks yourself would be fun, but why don't people watch a display that is better then they could do?
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
We had a collie who, if she got outside during fireworks or a thunderstorm, would just run and run. One time, she ran over to another town, about forty miles away. We thought we'd lost her.
The year that the fire happened in the nightclub in Rhode Island, my son absolutely freaked out when we went to a party where they lit fireworks. I think he was six or seven. It was so sad. We had to leave. He thought everyone was going to burn up. And the thing is, he never even saw it on the news, but he must have heard us talking abut it.
Posted by romanylass (Member # 6306) on :
I hate,loathe and despise fireworks. With a passion. They set them off for ANY reason around here. (The 4th! New Years! Chinese New Year! Cinco de Mayo! The independence day of every nation under the sun!) Not just for one day, well over a week. Until 1 or 2 AM.
Posted by Synesthesia (Member # 4774) on :
Kids keep setting off firecrackers every five seconds around here. They will not stop until someone loses a limb. My rabbit did not seem too happy about the noise. It made him run, but the window is closed anyway.
Posted by Lucky4 (Member # 1420) on :
If the party I was at last night was a decent representation of the general population, I'd say that this fireworks phenomenon might be driven by [20-something-year-old] MALES.
Following heaven only knows how many beers, all the guys were in the front yard seeing how many bottle rockets they could get to go off (out of their hands! of course!) at one time while all the girls cowered on the porch mumbling things about it all being fun and games till someone loses an eye.
It culminated when one guy actually managed to set part of his hair and shirt on fire. You'd think that'd be enough to stop the insanity; but no, eventually after much hard work and dedication, they were actually able to shoot a bottle rocket (out of their hands! of course!) across the street and into one of the guys' cars through an open window.
We womenfolk speculated that somehow this contributed to their manliness. For the record, we were unimpressed.
And the neighbors likely HATED us. Though, I didn't hear any dogs barking...
Posted by CaySedai (Member # 6459) on :
When we lived in Chicago, it was guns. People in the neighborhood would shoot off guns at midnight for those special occasions: July 4, Cinco de Mayo, New Year's Eve ...
Posted by CaySedai (Member # 6459) on :
Now we live in a small town in Iowa that has its own fireworks show. People come from towns all around. The fireworks are set up about a block from where I live and the show is awesome - they go off right over our heads.
Posted by Elizabeth (Member # 5218) on :
Well, Lucky4, maybe those boys will grow up to be these guys:
quote:Dudette, some people are freak out by fireworks simply because they've been around artillery in battle and the memories of those sounds are not pleasant. Same thing with some who've been around gun violence.
Are you serious? I too have a problem with people setting off fireworks prior to the actual holiday. But to say that it scares the old veterans is a far stretch from the truth. I would say that you could walk into any Veteran's Home today and ask any old-veteran if he would mind you taking him to the fireworks and he'd jump at the chance.
I don't mean to discredit any person with PTSD with what I'm about to say, because I know it's a very devistating condition. But, artillery and fireworks are completely different in many regards. Fireworks give everyone a reason to get together and, at least on the 4th, celebrate the things they (Vets) fought for. That's the reason you see so many Veterans hanging out watching them while wearing their old uniforms. And to think that those, older Vets wouldn't be their for fear if they were physically able is really stretching the truth.
Posted by scottneb (Member # 676) on :
quote:People in the neighborhood would shoot off guns at midnight for those special occasions
I had a friend in elementary school that was hit in the foot with a returning bullet.
Posted by Kayla (Member # 2403) on :
The sounds are the same.
Have you ever asked a vet with PTSD what he thinks of sudden loud noises?
Did you ever see Born on the Fourth of July? I'm not a fan of Stone's aversion to the truth, but that one scene with Cruise in the parade after he gets back. . .
Posted by scottneb (Member # 676) on :
Sure, that was a good movie, I won't deny that.
But, I've been in battle. I've got some good buddies that are going through that condition. I've even done multiple outings with the Vets in the Veteran's Home to see the fireworks on the 4th. This year is a bit different and I was unable to do it. But, I've only seen maybe three Vets that declined. All of which were senile anyways and the Home would have much rather kept them in.
Posted by scottneb (Member # 676) on :
Oh, Kayla. I'm not upset, so please don't read my posts like I am. I think I come accross a lot differently in my head.
One thing I do have a problem with is the big trucks, with BIGGER horns, blasting them into the crowd during parades. I was holding my ten-month-old son when a bunch of trucks came by and did that. It hurt MY ears, I can't imagine what my son felt.
Posted by scottneb (Member # 676) on :
Back to the Vet thing:
One year we had a guy that was very pissed that we couldn't get closer to the fireworks because he wanted to feel the concusions.
Posted by Telperion the Silver (Member # 6074) on :
My father is a Vietnam vet... he has no problem with fireworks. He loves them in fact. Sometimes I wonder if the peeps who have a problem with fireworks grew up under the fairly recent government ban on them and all the bad rap they've gotten since then. I was about 14 or so when the ban hit and I remember my father furious at the government. We went out and bought a ton of fireworks that year in protest.
Posted by Megan (Member # 5290) on :
Telp, my problem is not with their so-called "bad rap." It's with the disruption it brings to my life. I put it in the same class as people who drive through residential neighborhoods with bass thumping so loud it shakes the pictures on the wall. Yes, it's illegal, but mainly it's just RUDE.
Posted by quidscribis (Member # 5124) on :
Yup. Anything that comes between me and my sleep is something I can do without. I have enough sleep problems already without adding loud fireworks, loud yapping dogs, or loud banging drums with a Buddhist procession going down my sleep.
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peekaboo
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such humbugs. peeky is powerless. ![[No No]](graemlins/nono.gif)
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