Your story on the camel hair coat seems much like those who would wrap their sofa in clear plastic covers, or overlay their carpet with clear plastic runners. I remember them aplenty in my youth.

These were meant to preserve them, but it reduced the enjoyment of those items.

Like Neo says, better to make use of it now, as will you ever get to enjoy those purchases later?

Sometimes there is a false economy in some of the things we do.

That said, I went away with my wife to a resort for the long weekend, so we didn’t go to any parties.

Yet, the number was wrong. The Mayan calendar end is also off by about 2 years as a result. Not 2012. 2010. Look up the earthquakes.

I went to the parade in Chelmsford, which has become my tradition. It’s very patriotic, most people wear red, white, and blue, and the parade features everything from the Cub Scouts to various flavors of military veterans–and people applaud loudly for the veterans, and stand in respect. Kids on decorated bikes, home-made floats, and lots of wonderful old tractors. The parade starts off with a whole bunch of fire trucks, all using their sirens and horns — an awful racket, I close my ears, but I guess the kids like it! The parade organizers were handing out little flags and I waved mine with wild abandon.

There’s also an art show, and I was very impressed by the work. The art show is in the lovely old renovated building that was once the town hall and is now a community center. (And there is a road race earlier and other community events — most of the towns have something!)

Then at home we just grilled some brats, very low-key. No fireworks. I never thought of watching them on TV — that’s a pretty good idea!

In the morning we went to the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery and visited the final resting places of some older relatives and family friends who were thankfully able to survive the wars of WWII or Korea or Vietnam.

In the late afternoon we went to a Bar-B-Que where we enjoyed the bounty of the land helped kept free by those above.

May God continue to Bless America and all who defend her!

This was a different experience this year. My daughter and son-in-law had a wedding to attend on July 3 (daughter was a bridesmaid) so we skipped our usual trip to the Cape so we could babysit our granddaughter. This was not a hardship for us, quite the opposite actually. From what we heard everyone but the bride and groom were displeased that the wedding was held on a holiday weekend. Everyone but us that is.

July 4 was spent golfing with my bro-in-law (wife’s brother) and son-in-law (father of the aforementioned granddaughter). It was a perfect day here on the Northshore of Boston – sunny, warm, dry, with a slight breeze.

Afterwards the bro-in-law and his wife stayed around for drinks and dinner. It was a wonderful day. We didn’t talk or think much about the holiday – is that a bad thing?

Today, back to work for a short week.

Yet, I really don’t understand people who go to dinner, go to church, or whatever, looking like they were still wandering around the house. Attended a stage production in a lovely theater this weekend; much of the audience looked as though they just got up off he couch and headed out. I keep thinking that an occasion would feel more special if they made some effort to dress for it. I don’t even mean tie and jacket for men, or heels for ladies. Just a little something that looked like it took minimal thought.

Oh, well; obviously old fashioned and out of step.