"Head...Shoulders...Knees and...SOCKS!"

I'm not the most patriotic person, but let me tell you something - there is NOTHING like spending the fourth of July in Washington, DC.

The city is dressed up in bunting and flags, miles and miles of snow fencing go up in the weeks leading up to the fourth, and there are rows and rows of "Bobby's Pottys" and "Jiffy Johns" strategically placed all around the National Mall, and surrounding areas.

My first Fourth here, we went down to the Mall to camp out our place at the base of the Washington Monument. It was like one big fraternity party - there were groups that had set up volleyball nets and had games going, one group near us had dragged their couch down and were hanging out on that. You've got lots of families with tents or flags to identify themselves. We were so close to where they shoot off the fireworks (in the rainbow pool in the center of the new WWII memorial) that we had to lie down to see them.

Over the years the mood has changed a bit on the Mall. It's still very festive, and you still have the volleyball nets and tents and such. No more couches - they have signs up that tell you "No furniture" No alcohol either - you are in a national park after all. No fireworks - but you have enough of those coming later. And of course now in our post 9/11 world you have to go through security checkpoints to get in the secured perimeter of the Mall.

We've walked there, we've driven there, we've sat through the pouring rain to watch them. We've picnicked, we've brought pizza, and now we meet up with friends and their family who sit in the same spot every year and are always decked out in the red, white, and blue.

The Potomac river is filled with boats in prime fireworks watching spots behind the Lincoln Memorial. The snow fencing prevents people from parking along the side of the road on the GW Parkway right across the river in Virginia, but doesn't stop people from pulling over on 395 by the Pentagon where you have stunning views of the city.

Getting home is also always a memorable part of the evening. The Metro is PACKED and it's often faster to just walk home. We did the Metro once - never again. Luckily I am fortunate to work at an institution on the Mall, and have been able to park there, so we avoid the crunch, and it's very easy for us to get home quickly.

Sure New York has their yet another Macy's holiday celebration and Boston has the Pops, but where else can you watch fireworks from the same spot where Martin Luther King gave his "I have a dream" speech? To sit in the shadow of the Lincoln Memorial while watching 20 minutes of incredible fireworks in front of the Washington Monument with the Capitol in the background - its simply breathtaking. If you ever have the chance to do so, I highly recommend it.

That all being said - this year we didn't go. We spent this evening eating takeout Chinese and watching a Penn & Teller DVD. I caught some of the fireworks on TV and they looked great. Why didn't we go? Well it had been raining all day (they cancelled the parade down Constitution Avenue because the road flooded - in some cases it was ankle-knee deep!) and the thunderstorms were on and off. We probably were not going to stay for the fireworks anyway because they are way past Child's bedtime and rather noisy. Perhaps next year we will take him to go see them - it is truly a childhood memory that I am looking forward to making for him.

Happy U.S. Independence Day everyone!