How was everyone's 4th ?

Ok Californians...tell us what you did for the 4th...and if you're hung over today !

Well, we didn't make it quite as far as your area.... I intended to make it as far as Long Beach, but by the time we hit Seal, we were starving and the Philly Cheeseteak place was closed, so we headed back south to stop in Dana for pizza. Too bad, I was in the mood for remembrances of things in Long Beach. Stiil, a day spent on PCH is always good with me.....and I never turn down pizza. Did LB have fireworks?

Yes, the city puts on a free show from the decks of the Queen Mary, other than that, they're illegal here, but people shoot them off anyway.

I'm surprised you were able to even make it this far north. The holiday traffic is generally really bad for any of these beach cities, especially on the 405...worse than usual.

My boss and his wife had a big party at their house on the peninsula, but I just rode my bike there because I knew there would be NO parking at all. Food for days...

Only very slightly hung over...LOL! My neighbor hosted a neighborhood BBQ. Three of us got to discussing red wine over a bottle. Then I had to raid my cellar and open another bottle (Gray Wolf 2003 Cab...YUM!). Then while we were watching (legal here) fireworks in the cul-de-sac, another neighbor joined us, so of course I had to open another one---but I picked one that wasn't as good (shhhhh). I'm just not used to drinking that much any more!! But we had a good time and didn't have to think about driving anywhere, which is always a huge plus. DH was teaching motorcycle safety this morning, so we were up at 5:30. I really could have done with a nap this afternoon, but it's not hot here today so instead I got my last three tomato seedlings planted at last...WOOHOO!

Hope everyone had a great 4th and is enjoying the same perfect temps we've had all day---77 right now, and a very slight breeze. Gorgeous!

JD, we never take the freeway.....I hate freeways. Traffic on PCH was surprisingly light...or let's just say that it wasn't any worse than any other weekend in summer.

I had a very interesting 4th this year.
My grandson was in the Lake Forest parade in the morning, we came home and had lunch, then Jerry had to go to work for a few hours. I drove up to El Segundo to spend the evening with my dad. We had bbq'd hamburgers and coleslaw then went to his Senior Center in town. The Center is located in the park where they shoot off the firework display. They put out chairs on the patio and the Seniors can sit out there to watch the display. They are so close that we actually had to look straight up to see the fireworks and it looked like they would come cascading straight down at you. You could also feel them explode. It was so awesome.
I got home about 10:30 and hubby was just watching them on the t.v.

As I was driving the 35 miles home, down the 405 fwy, I had to really concentrate on the road, as there were at least 20 firework displays going on all the way home.

I had a wonderful time yesterday visiting with friends and members of my Native American Indian family at the Pechanga Pow Wow. I was quite honored to be allowed to sit with the Pico family during the Pow Wow. I was able to be there for the Honoring Song/Dance of a girl I've seen grow up to be a wonderful young woman. Her name is Brittaney and she is so kind and so caring. When she receives her degree next year she will be coming back to help the tribe.
I wish I could express to you the beauty, the meaning of the pageantry of Pow Wow. I'll give it a shot.
Usually, I try to arrive early enough before the Pow Wow starts, to Gourd Dance. Gourd Dancing is an Honoring of those who have served our country, past, present and future. It is good to watch these veterans out in the arena dancing to the beat of the drum. They also carry rattles, it used to be that they were made out of gourds, but these days more modern materials have been adapted for use. The rattles are shaken by the dancers at certain points in the dance. The dance tells a story one of marching, seeking, striking down the enemy, and emerging with thanks for surviving the encounter. It is not a story of heroics but of necessity, and overcoming obstacles. While the men dance in a circle in the center, the women wearing their fringed shawls dance along the sides of the arena to support the warriors. This is what I did yesterday. The women dance in place along the outside edge of the circular dance arena. Most of the dance steps mimic those of marching in place in time to the drum. When the beat changes so do the steps, at one point the steps go from one side to another as if the woman is searching the battlefield for her warrior. All movement is supposed to stop when the drum does. In competition, points are scored for having your feet on the ground when the last beat strikes. So the foot descends as the last beat is struck.
It is a beautiful ceremony to honor our warriors; our veterans.
It is followed by the Grand Entry Processional. It is quite a sight to see. Next year when my period of grieving is over I will be there dancing too. The Grand Entry is similar to a parade with spiritual elements. The first person to enter the arena being a Spiritual Elder who blesses the arena for the Pow Wow. That makes everything that occurs within its bounds to be Sacred Ground for the duration of the Pow Wow. After the Elder blesses the arena, the Procession begins with the Color Guard entering the circle from the east, dancing in a clockwise motion. There is a person called the Arena Director, and he and his assistants organize the dancers and make sure they are where they are supposed to be. The Flag Bearers and Gourd Dancers lead the way, followed by the Head Staff and any Royalty that might be there. After that the dancers are separated into two main groups, Northern and Southern. Mostly has to do with the style of dance, rather than specific tribes although it does tend to be regional. Then it is further broken down to style of dance, an example might be Golden Age Senior Southern Men Dancers. Another might be Northern Jingle Dress Womens Dancers. Elders always lead the way. You wouldn't believe some of the spats in line about who is older than who among the women. Silliness. The elders are followed by different styles of dance, mostly by adults, then there are the children, and the Tiny Tot dancers. They are usually with a parent who also dances and great latitude is given to the children while in the arena. By the time they are 5 or so they are expected to know how to behave in the arena, the protocol if you will.
At yesterdays, Pow Wow, there were enough dancers to make 7 full circles of dancers inside the arena, facing towards the west at once. That's a lot of dancers! The drums played during the processional. The audience was asked to stand and remove their covers (hats). Then they played the Flag Song and Posted the Colors. Starting with the Eagle staff. It is a great honor to be asked to be a flag bearer. The Eagle staff is followed by the Tribal Flag (if the pow wow is being hosted by a specific tribe on their land), the US flag, the CA flag, and flags from every branch of the military. Most if not all are carried by veterans who served in war zones. After the flags are posted they play the Victory Song, which some say is the Native American Indian National Anthem. After the flags are posted they dismiss everyone from the Arena and call out for a certain drum to play an intertribal, that means anyone can dance, even if they aren't wearing the customary regalia, (never called costumes! may be called outfits, but big faux pas to call an outfit a costume).
Since there was also competition dancing going on, it is important to get out there and dance. The judges are looking to see who does dance the intertribals and they score for them being there. They also call for a specific type of dance and all others leave the arena say except for the Grass Dancers, and they compete among themselves as to who is the best at that type of dancing.
Sometimes they call a halt to the dancing for a Special or Honoring. After Brittaney's Honoring, she gave gifts to those people she wanted to thank for being positive influences on her. I'm not talking about her family who are standing in support of her but rather, elders, teachers, friends who they want to acknowledge for their helpfulness. It's all in good fun and an essential part of the ceremony. To give to others because you've been honored might seem strange, but it is a beautiful custom.
It is quite a spectacle with all the colorful outfits, some of which incorporate everyday items to make interesting effects. Most recently the addition of CD's (the shiny side) replacing the mirror on some outfits, and glow in the dark feather attachments which look really cool bobbing around in the dark on top of the dancers head. I won't even go into the womens dress except that too, depends on the style of dance.
I will tell you that both the men and women make their own outfits, perhaps helped by a family member. Each one has spiritual significance to the dancer. This is why you never take a photo of an NAI in their regalia without first asking for their permission. Some people consider their clothing to be holy and not to be photographed.
After it got dark, the MC, cleared the arena of dancers and invited the public to come in and watch the fireworks show. People took the tops off their ez ups, they turned off the big lights, and lit off the fireworks and started the music. They had several patriotic songs they played including the Nat'l anthem, a medley of the songs from all branches of the armed services. Some were Indian drum songs, some were prayers for our warriors and for peace. During the Grand Finale they played the song "Proud to be an American", I swear there was not a dry eye in the place. I could also tell you that I've never seen a fireworks display with a butterfly in it. There were stars, Saturn like planets with rings around them, shooting stars, there was 150,000 people there. We waited for a long while after the show was over and it was a long show, before we even tried to head home. Even still it took a looooong time to get out of the parking lot.
I've been to a lot of fireworks displays. From the Hollywood Bowl to Disneyland, from the ones in O'side and the ones on Camp Pendleton, all over this part of the world, and I've alway enjoyed being at Pechanga for their fireworks show during the Pow Wow. This year it just happened to actually be on the fourth of July. Usually it's Saturday night of the Pow Wow. Oh and the weather was warm in the afternoon, and perfect for the fireworks!
I had a wonderful time. If you have any questions about anything I mentioned. LMK. DH is cooking and it's time to eat. LOL!
WIB,
SW

Jules, thanks so much for that description of your day. It sounds wonderful!

We had a quiet day at home, reading, trying to do as little as possible, then barbecued and looked for fireworks on the coast at night. We can usually see one or two shows at least, but the cloud cover moved in and obscured most of it, we think - we could hear them but only see a faint glow after the first few.

It was a beautiful weekend.

Can an Oregonian pop in? Didn't think you would mind Jasper. Had to thank SW for that wonderful description of the Pow Wow. Next time we see the dancers we'll know a little more. There will be some dancing at the Salmon Bake we're going to in Sept. Our local college has a lodge (not sure if that it what it is called) on campus. It's a place where Native American students can gather. It was on the news after the opening ceremonies.

We worked on our new deck in the morning and took mom to our park picnic where we live in the afternoon. Lots of food, good company, and it was very pleasant under the trees.

Sis, thanks for telling mom about the neck coolers, I had forgotten I had found one.

This message was edited Jul 5, 2009 10:14 PM

We had our annual fireworks display here on the lake; people come from all over the state to see this display. It only lasts about 30 minutes . . . $15,000 up in smoke.