If you could do three things in your life to make your life to make fireworks explode, what would they be?

Venus and Serena Williams are about to make history. Again.

Tomorrow will mark the third time the sisters will be meeting each other at the Wimbledon Ladies' Singles Final. Then a couple of hours later they will be playing as a team in the Ladies' Doubles Finals. 

I think the right word to use in a situation like this is "dominant". 

Last night at my 'hood's annual block party, one of my neighbors pulled up a lawn chair and started lighting firecrackers and handing them to kids. Some kids threw them on the ground next to their own feet. Others threw them on the neighbors' lawns. Then I said in a lady-like tone, "THAT IS AMAZINGLY STUPID AND SOMEONE IS GOING TO GET HURT. BUT NOT US," and stomped home, family in tow.

What do you think of this? From The New York Times:

Google Told to Turn Over User Data of YouTube, By Miguel Helft

If you're in the US, this promises to be a fun and festive 4th of July! The Moon in Leo all but guarantees a party mood, plus the holiday falls on a Friday this year -- just perfect for today's barbecues and picnics, not to mention tonight's fireworks. So, Happy Birthday to you, USA! And many happy returns!

"Love gives one a sense of direction, a sense of proportion and a sense of what is just.  Love is very sensible."

Ok, it's the 4th and I want to take the family somewhere.  The key is to spend as little money as possible.  How about a not-far-away-vacation?  I'm thinking about Latta Plantation and Mountain Island Lake.  Unleaded gas is $4.09 a gallon.  So, let's see what we're looking at here...

My favorite thing about participating in the blogosphere is the opportunity it provides to walk a mile (or two, or twenty) in the shoes of people in very differently life experiences from my own.  I have been learning much lately by reading some of the blogs by parents holding down the fort at home while their spouses are deployed overseas in the U.S. Armed Forces.  Many of these families are blogging their journey with great honesty and courage.

When I was a kid, the 4th of July was a big deal. Our house was one of three or four hotspots on the block, where kids and adults congregated to watch the show and enjoy the festivities. Sure, there was barbecued chicken and potato salad and beer and sitting on the stoop with the neighbors, but the main event was definitely the fireworks.