My own bed, coffee, water, shower, bathroom… everything just feels good at home after a long vacation. I slept so late because it was storming this morning and it was heavenly.

This afternoons we had an amazing barbecue with homemade potato salad, chip dip, brownies, and drinks. The fireworks set off just a bit after, and our entire neighborhood turned into a pyrotechnic display. I honestly don’t know how people afford the kind of fireworks they were shooting off in our neighborhood: mortar-type airborne fireworks like you’d see at a professional display. Yes, it’s fun, but there had to be thousands of dollars blown up just on our block tonight. I wouldn’t even know what to buy to get these displays, but clearly they were not from Minnesota.

The whole neighborhood filled with smoke, which made the whole experience more immersive, and for Annika, more overwhelming. She didn’t like the consistent explosions and to be fair, they were non-stop from every direction, so I can see how it could have felt scary. It almost felt like the neighbors were competing for who could be the most destructive. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear a garage or two burned down.

Still, most of the explosions have died down now – there’s only the occasional crack from down the alley – and overall, the night felt good. The temperature was nice and the entire block crackled and sparkled. It felt joyful, like the neighborhood was getting along and everything was good.

It’s nice that we still have moments like this, given the division and difficult news.