8 July 2008 - 8:35Fourth of July weekend

New experiences seem to jazz me up. I’ve just gotten off a three day weekend and had some good ones.

Bob and I went t the Takoma Park Independence Day Parade. What a wide range of participants! There were the usual politicians, public service personnel and veterans, the school kids and day care providers. There were also musicians (the steel drum players, the dc motors band, and even a Christian rock band).

There were dancers from Bolivia, the Virgin Islands, and elsewhere in the Caribbean. Their costumes were crazy with color, and the V. I. Carnival troupe was simply over the top (think Carmen Miranda on steroids). Other floats/marchers dealt with local political issues such as the upcoming referendum on having slots in Maryland. While some of the marchers made their opinions known in a straight-forward way, others used satire and hyperbole.

“Bring casinos to Takoma Park,” they said. Their float included a pickup truck decorated as a casino, with little kids playing poker looking like little gamblers. There was a gangster representing the criminal element, and also an Elvis impersonator. (Actually, having Elvis could be considered a motive FOR a casino.) There were Shriners in their fezzes, some with custom clear plastic fez protectors because rain was predicted. (Only a sprinkle or two actually came down, thank goodness.)

There was even a float for a conspiracy theory that on 9/11, the World Trade Center Buildings were actually brought down by controlled demolition. Only in Takoma Park would you find such a diverse yet entertaining group marching together. After the parade, we went to the gazebo in the center of the old town to hear Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer performing for the kids. Then, we went to the new location of HMT on Westmoreland Avenue.

On Sunday, we saw the movie, “Get Smart” which was funny but not remarkable. I rarely see new movies in a theater, so that aspect of the outing was remarkable. We went to a Thai Restaurant in Silver Spring after the show. The food was good, but they were so efficient, we were out of there in 30 minutes. So much for lingering over dinner.

On Sunday, we went downtown to the National Mall for the last day of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, to hear Marcia Ball. She plays a rocking blues boogie woogie swing kind of music. We danced to two numbers, but it was just too hot. We listened to the rest of the set from the bleachers.We only visited a little bit of the Bhutan exhibit. It was fascinating, but we didn’t have enough time. I could only remark on what a beautiful country it was, and that it seemed that their art only used the most brilliant colors.

That’s it for now. I’m looking forward to taking a little trip to WV in August. I wish it could be a long trip, but I don’t know if I can be spared from work that long. I’ll have to figure out how much I care about that.

For more photos from the weekend, check out my flickr site: http://flickr.com/photos/tackyjulie/