Fun O' Th' 4th

Patriotism notwithstanding (please see previous post if you doubt me...) I sometimes chuckle when I think about all the fuss over July 4th. (Well, it is special in the sense that it does only come once a year.) Here is a brief history lesson:





July 4th 1776 - our nation signed and adopted a Declaration of Independence - which paved the way to our Revolutionary war with England. In that document we set forth our desire to become independent from British rule. Now, each year on July 4th we "celebrate" this defiant, patriotic act by: Getting drunk, Watching sports, Going to the beach/lake/pool and laying around in a nearly nude state, lighting explosivees on fire, BBQ-ing some sort of dead animal (that one's my favorite), or All the above.





Now, given the fact that A. we're not big drinkers & 2. Nobody wants to see me lying around a beach/lake/pool in a half-naked state I chose to go fishing instead. (We'll be at a BBQ later this evening - lighting explosives of course, & doing our part to celebrate freedom from British rule.)





Below is a sample of what I caught today. (The one that got away.)









Yes, it really was about that big. Oh well.



Speaking of July 4th traditions - I just read here that Joey Chestnut just defeated Takeru Kobayashi in the annual Coney Island Nathans Hot Dog eating contest. 66 dogs in 12 minutes! A new world record. He beat his own world record 59 1/2 (yes they count halves!) he set just two weeks ago at the qualifying event in San Diego. There was a lot of angst going into this year's competition - Kobayashi apparently had been suffering from a bad wisdom tooth and an arthritic condition in his jaw. However, the American (Chestnut) now holds the crown, er' the Yellow mustard belt! I was rooting for Chestnut last year when he narrowly lost by less than two dogs. This year, Kobayashi had a small reversal at the end of the competition (barf!) which reduced his final tally by even more! This is a photo of him celebrating after last year's victory. What gets me is not the gluttony of it all - yes it is a bit unsettling to watch! Rather, that this is considered a genuine sport. They really are athletes and judging from the appearance of the competitors - it isn't a "big-man's" sport anymore - look at the abs on that guy! The girl behind him in the picture is called "The Black Widow" she weighs less than 100 lbs. and gives all the guys a run for their money (depending on what kind of food they are competing with.) This is serious business - with serious money at stake apparently. Crazy isn't it? Heckuva way to make a living if you ask me.

Happy 4th everyone!