Alan NeSmith
Long days and short nights. With a chance of an isolated thunderstorm every afternoon and midday heat hot enough to bake cookies on your dashboard. It’s summertime in Northeast Georgia!
As we fight to keep the grass cut and black spots off our hydrangeas, opportunities for fun abound. And for those of us with school-age children at home and a career, it can turn into a balancing act most every evening. Thank goodness my bride is home this summer with our boys.
It’s in times like these, when there’s no homework, ball practice, morning school routine or set bedtime our home is pretty relaxed. At any given hour, you can find a son up to something. Whether it is planning or pulling off a practical joke, or testing the limits of the front porch swing with a dog sitting beside them, they are always up to something.
Most of all, they like to try and teach me something new. This week I learned the term urban fireworks. Like most middle school boys, William and Fenn love fireworks. And believe it or not, I do too! Heather, mmm, not too much.
On Wednesday night about 10 p.m., William announced, “I believe it will be a couch night for me.” And Fenn said, “I can’t wait to sleep in tomorrow morning.”
Then walking back through the den on the way to brush my teeth William said, “Dad, can I shoot these tonight?”
After a pause, I told him it was a little late for a weeknight. And he said, “But Dad, these are urban-friendly fireworks.”
Urban-friendly fireworks!?!
So, from the backyard side of the driveway we launched my first “urban-friendly firework.”
Siisss. Shssshs.
Tiny pop.
Fountain of color.
“Well, I’ll be,” I said. “Now we have weekday and weekend fireworks!”
Then we proceed to let about eleven more shoot into the Mud Creek Proper Sky.
Folks, I’m here to tell you, there is such a thing as an urban friendly firework. And William, you have once again taught your old dad a new trick.
Alan NeSmith is the chairman of Community Newspapers Inc. Reach him at anesmith@TheNortheastGeorgian.com or 706-778-4215.