Letting the Good Times Roll...Again

A lakeside look at a better 4th
By Ken De Laat

Well, that was fun.
Not sure about how the holiday went from where you spent it but if our observations regarding the revelry taking place on and around the lake at N3 World Headquarters is any indication we’d be willing to bet most folks had a pretty good time.

Spending a good part of the day parked at a sandbar with a flotilla of other watercraft one saw all the traditional trappings of a holiday summer weekend as tubes, toys and float pads filled the area and were constantly circled by jet skis and boats pulling tubers skiers, and wave boarders. Being a big believer in sunscreen it was intriguing to watch some revelers as their once pale white skin transformed into a pinkish glow before igniting into a rather rosy  red. Generally this occurred after a few denials about the need for a shirt and more than a few adult beverages thus creating the perfect storm for  a classic dual dilemma the next morning. That magic combination of the searing pain associated with a bad sunburn and a ‘where in the name of all things decent is the coffee and why are we out of aspirin?' kind of hangover.

But beyond the crimson cavaliers, people were out in force filling the waters and lakefronts and ready to have a good time. Last summer the pandemic had eased a bit but still loomed heavily and the brief respite we enjoyed for a time came crashing down with cases surging in the fall.  This year it feels different as the vaccine numbers keep rising and the cases continue falling, creating an optimism (albeit somewhat cautious) that the worst of this viral intrusion into our lives is past us.
LSC Lil and I had friends and family over (another scene put on sabbatical last summer)to enjoy food, drink and pyrotechnics and I had forgotten how truly enjoyable such gatherings were. 
 
And as if celebrating this welcome return to the lives we’ve missed, the fireworks on Hess, framed by the imposing ‘ring of fire’, were perhaps the most impressive witnessed in over 2 decades of observation. The ‘works  came from a variety of sites providing a panoramic viewing as the action shifted continually from one sector to another and another and another.
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They proved to be the perfect nightcap for a weekend of merrymaking.
And a hopeful sign that perhaps at long last…
We’re coming back.
And coming back strong.

“Good times are a reminder and a reward for dealing with the difficult and challenging times we all go through.”- James A Murphy