Today is the 4th of July
This is my first 4th on US Soil since 1999
My family moved back to the USA in January, we are coming up on 6 months of being back home. It’s been a great experience.
I am writing this article at 11:30 PM on July 3rd, it will probably be after midnight when I post it, so it will officially be on the 4th of July.
Feyma celebrated 4th of July
Feyma, and two of our sons, Aaron, and Jared have been in the USA for the 4th of July for each of the past 2-years, though. For Chris and I, this is our first 4th back on US soil, though.
In 2017, that was the first year that Feyma and Aaron worked in Alaska during the summer. In 2017, Jared spent much of the summer in the USA staying first with his grandmother, and then with a friend. In 2018, all 3 of them worked in Alaska.
Our 4th of July plans
Here in Logansport, they have a City fireworks display at dusk on the 4th of July. We plan to attend that. It will be interesting to see how it is. In the 90s when we lived in Vancouver, Washington, they had a huge fireworks show there every year. In fact, the Fort Vancouver fireworks show is touted as being the largest fireworks display west of the Mississippi, and I expect that to be true.
I am sure that the local fireworks in Logansport will not be up to the Vancouver show, but we are still really looking forward to it!
We will probably go down to the park where the fireworks show will be held a few hours ahead of dusk so we can partake in some of the activities there.
Feyma and Chris will be off from work for the 4th, so we can enjoy ourselves.
I am happy to be back
I get a lot of messages from friends in the Philippines, both expats and Filipinos there, asking me if I miss the Philippines.
Yes, I do miss the Philippines, but I am also enjoying my new life here in the States. There are some drawbacks, but overall I think that we made the right move in coming back when we did.
Drawbacks
As I said, life here does have some drawbacks for me. I wrote a while back about the empty-nest syndrome, and that is hard on me. Not only two of our kids being gone from the home, but also just not having kids around. In the Philippines, there were always a lot of kids hanging around the house, and I enjoyed that.
We are adjusting, though, and I try to keep busy in order to keep the loneliness to a minimum. At the times when Feyma and Chris are at work, and I am doing online work here at my home office, though, it is so quiet and lonely here!
US Political Situation
The political situation in the USA is so divided these days. It almost seems like you can’t be friends or even associate with people that don’t agree with your political opinions. It did not use to be like that.
This makes me very sad, and I don’t like it. However, from the things I see on the news, the situation has become similar in the Philippines now too. The Philippines always seems to follow the trends in the USA, so I should not be surprised.
The 4th of July should be a day of patriotism and pride in our country. It is sad that it is just another day of fighting over politics. Maybe in the future, the USA can become a more friendly place again. I hope so.
Happy Birthday, USA. Two-Hundred-Forty-Three years. 243. Hopefully many more 4th of July celebrations ahead.
Bob, I would have to agree the Philippines ‘used’ to follow the trends as in the USA, but not these days it seems! Maybe it’s a good move, time will tell, I guess..
hi Don, I’m not trying to be disagreeable, but I am going to disagree with you. The Philippines to this day very much follows us trans. Give me a couple examples where they have not.
Enjoy the 4th Bob, I remember that you always reminded those desiring to move to The Philippines that it takes a certain amount of time to adjust. I am sure in some situations it will take you time to adjust to so many changes since you last lived in the USA. I know you and your family will make it though.
An empty nest will need other birds to keep it fun! Now Niño and I will have reason to come visit and stay with you and Feyma! Hahahaha
Yes, come for a visit anytime.
Happy 4th! It’s been nearly six years since I moved back to the USA.
Happy Fourth of July to you as well. How are you feeling about your move? Do you miss the Philippines?
Hi Bob,
Wished my Siberian Husky like the fire works show as much as we did. Butte America has it’s fire works display on July 3rd. Rumor has it that this was done so miners would show up for work on July 5th sober.
My sister-in-law and husband came over to watch. It was good day – we went for a drive in the mountains and had a picnic. We drank a few beers (something I don’t normally do), had Mexican dinner delivered, and watched the fireworks. Terry, my brother-in-law, wanted to take pictures, but he got so involved watching that by the time he realized he needed to actually point his camera and shoot it was all over. He’ll never live that down. The dog found a place to hide.
All in all a great day was had by all. Hope your 4th is as good as our 3rd!
Hi Tony – Sounds like it was a nice 3rd (4th) in Butte! I am glad that you enjoyed the day.
We also had a very nice day as well. We took a little road trip in the early part of the day, and then we went to the Logansport Fireworks display last night. It was spectacular.
Hi
Bob
I agree with you to some extent. But there exceptions one of my buddies totally disagrees with me on politics. But we are still friends but usually at work I avoid the discussions. I still have 20+ year old political cartoons on the wall in my office and I work in a US Government office. They will come down when I am asked. So far they get a few comments.
Have a wonderful day.
Hi Nathan – These days, it is rare to have friends who totally disagree politically. I do have some too, though.