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Raising a glass
of tea
By Susan Olling
Most Americans seem to have taken John Adams’s recommendations for
celebrating what he called the “day of deliverance” (02 Jul 1776
actually, but that’s another topic) to heart. While Independence
Day is an important holiday, there are other dates during the period of
1775-1781 that are more important to this fan of the American
Revolution. Also, American independence wasn’t a sure thing
during the peace negotiations (our revolution did become part of a
world war). But I digress.
I just read an article about the best and worst places to celebrate
Independence Day. The nation’s capital didn’t make the top
ten. Some of the local tourism folks, however, think spending
Independence Day in D.C. is on the bucket list (please get rid of that
silly phrase) for lots of Americans. Why is a mystery to
me. Before anyone responds, I have experienced Independence Day
on the National Mall. Once. And I haven’t done that
since. To be fair, I thought it might be interesting to volunteer
at one of the sites. Interesting is not an adjective I would use
to describe that particular Independence Day.
Let me count the ways why D.C. (more specifically, the National Mall)
should be avoided this Saturday. Unless you’re like Mr. History
and others, who will be working down there.
Crowds. It’s wall to wall people on that big green swath.
Ugh. Thank you, WETA and Maryland Public Television, for
providing an alternative: watching the concert and the fireworks in the
comfort of one’s air conditioned home, thereby avoiding the crowds and
the other things mentioned if you read on. What a
deal!
Weather. Welcome to summer in D.C. The heat and humidity
that are a part of summer in this area take getting used to, even for
those of us who live here. Tourists can be in for a nasty
surprise when they’ve been out in the sun too long. Stay
hydrated.
Security. Eons ago, people brought couches and other pieces of
furniture to stake out their territories hours before the festivities
started. Since 2002, waiting in line to go through security
stations has been part of the Independence Day “fun” on the National
Mall. Prepare ahead by finding out what you can bring and what’s
verboten. Do bring plenty of patience with you.
Metro. Taking our little subway system is the only sane way to
get to the National Mall at any time, but it’s use is imperative on 04
Jul. Metro will be crowded as people make their way to the Mall
throughout the day. After the fireworks, though, the crush is
on. The system fills with sweaty. cranky adults and their equally
sweaty, cranky munchkins trying to cram themselves onto crowded trains
as everyone tries to leave at the same time. The local news
outlets always have people at Metro stations all day reporting all this
madness. I watch and get a good laugh.
Trash. Let’s face it: Americans are sloppy people who don’t
always like to clean up after themselves. At no time and in no
place is this more evident that on 04 Jul on the National Mall.
My lingering memory of that one time I went down there on Independence
Day was trash as far as the eye could see, and it’s like that every 04
Jul. I’ve always hoped that the mess would stay until the next
day so that Americans could see what slobs they are. No such
luck. There may be those who take umbrage with my description of
Americans as “slobs”. What other word can describe people who
leave a national park in such a mess every Independence Day?
There’s no excuse for such a lack of respect. Oh yes, your tax
dollars will be used to pay the maintenance staff to clean up the
garbage left by the hordes who go down there.
Not sure whether I’ll watch the fireworks on TV or watch our city’s
fireworks, which require just a short walk to get to. In any
event, I’ll raise a glass of tea (how deliciously ironic) to Mr. Adams,
Mr. Franklin, and the rest of the Philadelphia gang who made this “day
of deliverance” possible, whether it’s 02 or 04 Jul.
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