Happy 4th Of July!

Tomorrow is the Fourth Of July which has me thinking about family traditions.  I spent many Independence Day celebrations with my mom and dad in the parking lot of a laundromat.  It was located on a hill, an excellent vantage point for watching the fireworks display launched from the local drive-in at the bottom of the hill.  Mom packed a cooler with watermelon and lemonade, and Dad threw the aluminum lawn chairs in the trunk.  I usually brought a friend, and we would run around spelling our names in the air with sparklers, or lighting those buttons of ash called "snakes".   I often attended this event still dressed in the swimming suit I'd worn to the pool that day.  (I spent a LOT of time in water when I was a kid.)

In San Francisco, it's hard to plan something special for the annual fireworks display because there's always a chance of thick pyrotechnics-squashing fog and/or frigid July temperatures.  Who wants to run with sparklers while wearing a parka? 

I need some ideas.  I love to hear, and occasionally steal, other people's holiday traditions; so let's hear them.