KABOOM!!!

So last week, leading up to and including the 4th of July, I was working at a fireworks stand.  Yes, it was me, a whole lot of explosives, and about 4 fire extinguishers all under one roof.  It was a blast (figuratively) and it got me out of bed before 8 am every day, which is impressive.  Basically, we had a tent, we'd open up at 9 am, and there would be at least two people working at all times.  I was usually on the morning shift.

For the first few days it was pretty dead, so I had lots of time to reorganize things, memorize prices and descriptions, and chat about current events, education, economics, etc.  We also drank lots of water and set up fans because it was uncharacteristically hot (in Western Washington-speak, read 90 degrees F or above).

Wednesday and Thursday were both 10 hour days, which was indeed exhausting.  I was doing a lot of smiling, even by my standards, and if I hadn't gotten enough practice before, I very quickly became an expert cashier (if you ever need one, call me up, although I'm still thinking materials chemistry is a better route than career cashier).  I also really solidified those names and prices in my head... I could still name and price pretty much the entire inventory (although if you want to test that, don't wait too long because I can't be sure how long it will last).  As it is I will satisfy myself with telling you that Smoke Balls were $5 buy one get one free and this mondo thing called Earth Shaker was $149.99 and I don't think we sold any of them.  There were, however, multiple people who came in and spent over $500, which kind of boggles my mind.

Another interesting thing about fireworks in Washington is that, well first, we are allowed to shoot them off in specific periods of time around July 4th.  However, things like bottle rockets and firecrackers are illegal.  They are legal on any of the, for lack of a better term, Indian Reservations in the area though, and this creates some interesting market dynamics.

Aside from all this, life has continued as normal, as has the attic-cleaning spree.  This has dug up many more gems from my childhood, a few of which I will share here.

The 4th Grade math book that I hated with a passion because it
wanted me to write out all my long division the long way.

90's child in the snow

Halloween when I was 4.

I also saw the white rabbit again yesterday.  This time it was sitting in somebody's yard right next to a black cat, no joke!  If I were superstitious... but it's actually not that weird because there are an awful lot of black cats in the neighborhood these days.  :P  Lastly, I have acquired new socks, a particularly cute pair of which is pictured below; isn't my life exciting?