Independence Day Party
We had a very busy Saturday... first, we went to lunch for a little 'going-away' meal with Adam... then we headed to the airport to say goodbye to Adam (I'll write about this another time and add some photos)... then we went to a really nice Independence Day party at Tom and Karen's house.
By the time we were heading to the party, I was exhausted and my health was teetering on being quite lousy. My health has been bordering on poor since a little incident at the lake that simply took far too much out of me and I'm still trying to recover. Fortunately, I was loaded up on extra medications throughout the time at the lake house and even more so once my health deteriorated so I am in much better shape than had I not pre-medicated.
When we arrived at Tom and Karen's on Saturday evening, I planted my exhausted mind and body in a chair and stayed there. Even socializing required more energy than I had that night.
Sheila and I just sat and enjoyed the company. We met a few of Tom and Karen's friends, had some nice conversations, and we really enjoyed ourselves. I was so exhausted that it may not have appeared as though I enjoyed myself but we really did enjoy ourselves. I just wish I was feeling more like myself so I could have been a bit more lively and animated... ie, like my 'normal' self.
Sheila probably wasn't much in the mood for a party having just said goodbye to Adam a couple of hours earlier but, as I said, we both enjoyed ourselves and the party was a lot of fun.
Once it was dark, our hosts treated us to a little fireworks show too! The neighbors really enjoyed it from the sounds of the cheers and the yelled "thank you's" after the show. Even passing motorists were honking their horns at the show!
Typically, I avoid fireworks at all cost. Fireworks bring back memories I have purposely pushed out of my daily thoughts years ago... I've sort of compartmentalized them. Fireworks remind me of the career I loved and lost due to line-of-duty injuries and poor health... I'm reminded of long lost friends... simply put, fireworks remind me of too much grief and put me into a state of emotional overload. Ironically, fireworks are supposed to be a celebration... not really so much for a veteran... and definitely not so much for a disabled veteran.
Fireworks... even the smell of gunpowder... evokes very vivid memories and these are usually memories we try to avoid most times. For me, I have great difficulty sleeping... and I become far too immersed in thoughts of the past. Then, that makes sleeping even more difficult. Anyway, this year I dropped my personal rule about fireworks because I was already struggling with all the difficulties that come with exposure fireworks.
For the past month, we've been completely immersed in Air Force family... actually, the past six months have been that way... so, my inner self was already grappling with past vs present, healthy vs unhealthy, physically fit vs disabled, and the stages of grief that seem to cycle perpetually. Adding a nice night of fireworks was not going to make anything worse at this point!
I had my camera in my hands all day long since we said our goodbyes to Adam this day. I didn't have the energy to change lenses, but I did managed to get some nice photos of the fireworks using one of my portrait lenses. I would have preferred a lens that was a little wider for this fireworks show but I simply did not have the energy to deal with it. I changed some settings, fired away and enjoyed the show!
Tom and Karen put on a really nice show as well as a really nice party. We had a really nice time although I do wish I had more energy so that my enjoyment would have been more obvious at the time!
Thanks, Tom and Karen... after I get the little kitchen grilling area built, we'll have to have you come up to our place for a barbeque!
By the time we were heading to the party, I was exhausted and my health was teetering on being quite lousy. My health has been bordering on poor since a little incident at the lake that simply took far too much out of me and I'm still trying to recover. Fortunately, I was loaded up on extra medications throughout the time at the lake house and even more so once my health deteriorated so I am in much better shape than had I not pre-medicated.
Sheila and I just sat and enjoyed the company. We met a few of Tom and Karen's friends, had some nice conversations, and we really enjoyed ourselves. I was so exhausted that it may not have appeared as though I enjoyed myself but we really did enjoy ourselves. I just wish I was feeling more like myself so I could have been a bit more lively and animated... ie, like my 'normal' self.
Sheila probably wasn't much in the mood for a party having just said goodbye to Adam a couple of hours earlier but, as I said, we both enjoyed ourselves and the party was a lot of fun.
Once it was dark, our hosts treated us to a little fireworks show too! The neighbors really enjoyed it from the sounds of the cheers and the yelled "thank you's" after the show. Even passing motorists were honking their horns at the show!
Typically, I avoid fireworks at all cost. Fireworks bring back memories I have purposely pushed out of my daily thoughts years ago... I've sort of compartmentalized them. Fireworks remind me of the career I loved and lost due to line-of-duty injuries and poor health... I'm reminded of long lost friends... simply put, fireworks remind me of too much grief and put me into a state of emotional overload. Ironically, fireworks are supposed to be a celebration... not really so much for a veteran... and definitely not so much for a disabled veteran.
Fireworks... even the smell of gunpowder... evokes very vivid memories and these are usually memories we try to avoid most times. For me, I have great difficulty sleeping... and I become far too immersed in thoughts of the past. Then, that makes sleeping even more difficult. Anyway, this year I dropped my personal rule about fireworks because I was already struggling with all the difficulties that come with exposure fireworks.
For the past month, we've been completely immersed in Air Force family... actually, the past six months have been that way... so, my inner self was already grappling with past vs present, healthy vs unhealthy, physically fit vs disabled, and the stages of grief that seem to cycle perpetually. Adding a nice night of fireworks was not going to make anything worse at this point!
I had my camera in my hands all day long since we said our goodbyes to Adam this day. I didn't have the energy to change lenses, but I did managed to get some nice photos of the fireworks using one of my portrait lenses. I would have preferred a lens that was a little wider for this fireworks show but I simply did not have the energy to deal with it. I changed some settings, fired away and enjoyed the show!
Tom and Karen put on a really nice show as well as a really nice party. We had a really nice time although I do wish I had more energy so that my enjoyment would have been more obvious at the time!
Thanks, Tom and Karen... after I get the little kitchen grilling area built, we'll have to have you come up to our place for a barbeque!
Some nice fireworks photography! That can be hard to do.
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