by Anura Guruge
on July 4, 2022
It was different.
It was minimalistic.
Very subdued. Mellow. Peaceful.
I kind of liked it. Gave you a chance to contemplate & take stock of life.
Thank YOU, Wolfeboro. Nice show.
by Anura Guruge
on July 3, 2022
Click images to ENLARGE.
It felt like it was the best fireworks in many years — better than last year. But, your memory plays tricks when it comes to fireworks. All said, it was satisfying — & that is what counts in the end.
Definitely MORE people than last year. That was palpable. But, it wasn’t packed & the traffic was light. I got my accustomed spot, on the bridge, dead in front of where the fireworks go off, at 8:55pm, without any problem. To be fair there wasn’t that many people on the bridge.
The weather was PERFECT. No rain, not even clouds. It was a spectacular evening. We really lucked out.
The fireworks started, BANG, at 9:20 (per schedule) & finished at 9:38. 18-minutes. 2 minutes shorter than last year.
We had more FOUNTAIN like displays & the crowd loved it. See images above.
But, for the fountain displays it was very much your typical Alton July 3rd firework show. We are used to it. We know what to expect. Nothing too spectacular, just an average, ‘low budget’ production. Also to be fair, Alton’s MAIN firework display is reserved for August for ‘Old Home Day‘.
It was the accustomed staccato, boom … pause … bang … pause … boom … pause, display culminating in short, climatic finale which this year was a tad shorter than usual. However, people loved it. It was much appreciated.
It was good. I am glad I went.
Thank YOU Alton (though, as a taxpayer, I did my bit to pay for it).
by Anura Guruge
on June 30, 2023
Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com
Wasn’t that long ago. Just 6 years ago, i.e., 2017.
6 (or 5) year gaps are the norm for this type of repeating holiday given that we have 7 days in a week. So, we essentially cycle through the week. Leap years mess this up & we then get a 11 year gap. That happened prior to 2017. So, the previous July 4th on a Tuesday was in 2006. The next one will be in 2028.
Last year it was a on a Monday. That gave everyone a long 3-day weekend. This year some lucky folks MIGHT get a 4-day weekend.
by Anura Guruge
on June 23, 2023
The 4th of July is ON THE 4th of July.
This should NOT be a complicated proposition.
The 4th of July is NOT on the 2nd of July. That is pretty simple & obvious.
The Declaration of Independence took place on the 4th of July. That is why the 4th of July is called Independence Day. That is why the 4th of July is a Federal & State HOLIDAY.
Yes, the ‘Lee Resolution‘ was passed on July 2. But, July 2 is NOT Independence Day. July 2 is NOT a holiday.
I would even say that this is UNPATRIOTIC. Not marking July 4. It is like not acknowledging Christmas. There are those that are offended when people don’t use ‘Christmas’ in greetings. This is similar — if NOT worse.
I can tolerate fireworks being on July 3 (as it is in Alton). But, NOT the parade.
I can understand IF July 4 was NOT a holiday. But, it is.
I was asked to walk in this parade. Then I saw the date! I thought it was a TYPO. I checked. I was not happy. I am NOT going to walk in a July 2 parade. I am NOT (totally) stupid (just partly). I have been asked to walk in another — & that is ON the 4th. Yes, I plan to take part in that parade.
Shame on YOU Laconia.
by Anura Guruge
on August 14, 2022
Click images to ENLARGE.
First & foremost, it has to noted that there was hardly anyone there for these Saturday, August 13, 2022, 9pm, fireworks. It was deserted. When the fireworks started there was at MOST 6 boats south of the bandstand. Usually that section of the bay is packed (& it was amusing that one BIG partyboat (i.e., pontoon) turned around & headed back under the bridge DURING the fireworks. Never seen that. I doubt if there were 500 people on shore for these fireworks. There was NO traffic. NO TRAFFIC whatsoever. The road that I park on (normally bumper-to-bumper) was empty. I was THE ONLY car parked! There was ONLY ONE police cruiser in total. Even he didn’t have much to do. I asked him why there wasn’t more people. He speculated that people might NOT have known! Strange. ‘Old Home Week’. That was fairly well publicized & known — & most folks know we have fireworks on the Saturday. Maybe they had forgotten over the COVID hiatus.
All said, the lack of crowds (& boats) was the biggest takeaway from this firework display. It was kind of weird. A firework display to a near empty ‘stand’. [By the way, I didn’t find out the name of the group that played on the docks prior to the fireworks — but, they were good. I might have gone earlier to hear more of them.]
I have a personal adage that ALL public firework displays are GOOD (by definition). Of course, there is levels of goodness & on that scale last night’s fireworks didn’t score that great. I am sorry to say that they were kind of lame. I might even venture to say flaccid & I do not say that lightly.
The fireworks lasted exactly 20 minutes. Spot on. Started sharp on time. 90% was just plain, common or garden starbursts fired sporadically — one could even say halfheartedly. The barge from which the fireworks are set off was also moored much further out in the way than usual. It is possible that they were concerned that hot debris might fall on the newly renovated bandstand. That the bursts were further away made them even less dramatic. All in all it was not great. Even the always much anticipated ‘grand finale‘ wasn’t that great. It was OK. Nothing to write home about.
After this year’s ‘July 4th’ Alton fireworks I said this:
Alas, that was not the case. Well, let’s hope we have better shows in Alton next Summer.
by Anura Guruge
on July 5, 2022
Click images to ENLARGE.
The ‘Wolfeboro‘ 4th of July 2022 fireworks were good. As ever it was a grander display than that at ‘Alton’ the night before — more, slightly fancier fireworks fired with more rapidity though, alas, still manually rather than via a programmed, computer firing system. But, it was good.
Last year’s 4th of July show at Wolfeboro, with COVID still very much in the news, was memorable. The fireworks were fired from a barge moored on the Bay — rather than from the ‘bottom’ playing field at Brewster. See below. Having the fireworks go off over water, as in Alton, made a difference.
But this year we were back to Brewster. I don’t know why.
As with Alton the night before the crowds were light THOUGH the boat traffic looked about par — maybe even a tad above par. I got to Wolfeboro at 9:10. The area around ‘Huggins’ was EMPTY — both of people & cars. Nobody walking towards Brewster! I genuinely thought I had mixed up the dates & as such missed the fireworks. So, I drove on further. Saw a FEW stragglers. NO POLICE. No blue lights. I pulled into ‘Anderson Hall‘ parking. There was plenty of empty spots, so I parked there. By then I could see more people. Strange. I would say we were at 1/2 normal capacity. It was more akin to what I expect at the New Year’s Eve fireworks than those for the 4th.
The show started, promptly at 9:30 & finished a few seconds ahead of 10pm. So, a 30-minute show. Longer than that at Alton.
There was police presence when we were trying to get out. Not as numerous or active as usual. Traffic getting out wasn’t bad. I can’t stress how atypically uncrowded it was. But, it was good. I enjoyed it. Thank you Wolfeboro.
by Anura Guruge
on July 4, 2022
Click images to ENLARGE.
It was GOOD to have the fireworks back in Alton Bay on July 3. A definite sign that normalcy is coming back — or in the case of Alton, already well & truly back. I like fireworks — both setting them off myself & shows. I try not to miss any local firework shows. As far as I am concerned you need to see as MANY firework displays as you can during your life.
And given my fondness for fireworks, I stoutly maintain that there is NO such thing as a bad fireworks display. As far as I am concerned they are all ‘good’ per my definition.
Alton Bay, last night, was NOT as crowded as I had expected. To be honest it was only at about 1/2 capacity compared to past years when there had been much more folks, traffic & boats. But, there was a fair crowd & they were happy & content. It is possible that people did NOT realize that the fireworks were on last night. I, as you know, did my little bit to get the message out — though I probably should have done it earlier. Many people still not appreciate that Alton does their 4th fireworks on the 3rd. Alton lets (famous) Wolfeboro have the honors on the 4th (& YES, I plan to be there. (SMILE)).
Given that it wasn’t that crowded parking, at my usual spot, was a breeze. Hardly anybody else parked! As such I was 20 minutes early.
The show started at 9:20 (as stated) & finished around 9:40. Par for the course. Folks were happy.
It was back to normal. That meant that it was also your typical, Alton July 3rd firework show. Nothing too spectacular, just an average, ‘low budget’ production. But, we in Alton are used to it — & to be fair, Alton’s MAIN firework display is reserved for August for ‘Old Home Day’.
It was the accustomed staccato, boom … pause … bang … pause … boom … pause, display culminating in short, climatic finale. We all love that. Most of us wait for it. We know it is coming. Well it came & as ever it was decent. Worth waiting for. I enjoyed it.
Thank YOU Alton (though, as a tax payer, I did my bit to pay for it).
by Anura Guruge
on July 3, 2022
Last year, i.e., 2021, due to COVID etc., there was NO public fireworks in ‘Alton’ during the entire month of July.
NOT SO IN 2022.
There will be fireworks, at ‘Alton Bay’, on Sunday, July 3rd starting at 9:20pm.
July 3rd is the traditional day for Alton’s ‘4th of July’ firework display (‘over the Bay‘) so that they don’t have to compete with the show put on by neighboring Wolfeboro on the 4th.
So, the July 3rd fireworks are BACK in Alton.
Got that?
There will be fireworks, over the Bay, tonight.
by Anura Guruge
on July 4, 2021
This is NOT right, or kosher, by any measure. There is a very real potential that a lot of U.S. investors could end up losing a lot of money.
NO, I did not buy DIDI. Just did NOT have a good feeling about them. I have seen too many recent IPOs tank after the first few days of exuberant euphoria. I was going to wait & see what happens. I told a few people, by e-mail, that I was going to wait until it dropped to the $13 range (i.e., below the IPO price). Instead of buying DIDI, I did, however, buy a few shares of ‘XMTR‘ which IPOed on the same day. It hasn’t done great as yet, but I like its ‘story’ — i.e., it locates spare manufacturing capacity for those looking for manufacturing sources.
But, back to DIDI.
This looks like a clever (but nasty) trick by the Chinese to hurt American investors & cock a snook at President Biden. The U.S. must react. You can’t let them get away with it.
Their timing also couldn’t have been accidental. They did it on July 4th. That alone is significant. But, to make it worse, July 5 is a holiday in the U.S. with the stock markets closed. So, investors in other countries, including China, can react to the news while U.S. investors fret.
Not nice. Not good. China is getting more & more brazen.
by Anura Guruge
on July 3, 2021
The postponement of the fireworks is due to weather. The Wolfeboro police was talking about that earlier today. The Parade, from what I can see, was always scheduled for the Monday. That seems strange. I am sure it used to be on the DAY. I was a regular. But, haven’t been in a few years.
I rarely, if ever, miss any Wolfeboro fireworks. I have a reserved spot at Brewster.
This weather, this weekend, is something else. But, we need the rain.