4th of July

I am celebrating the 4th of July by reading a book.  You might think this is a lame way to spend a holiday, but you don't know the book I'm reading.  It's I'm a Stranger Here Myself by Bill Bryson, and it is a collection of articles he wrote for a British newspaper after returning to the United States after 20 years of living abroad.

These essays cover everything from the United State's preoccupation with fighting drugs, the incompetence of our federal agencies, the obesity of our citizens, and the lengths to which we will go to remain indoors.  The wonder of all this is that Bryson writes with a charming affection so that I finish an article and smile, "We Americans are weird, bless us."

Of course, I cannot argue with the man, since instead of sitting outside in unbearable heat for hours to watch a short colorful extravaganza in the sky, I chose to stay inside, wearing a blanket in air conditioning, reading a book.

Home of the free.