Nothing says NYE like fireworks. Countries all around the world celebrate this exciting time in similar ways- fireworks, fireworks and more fireworks (and maybe some alcohol thrown in for good measure). I’ve only celebrated the New Year in 4 different countries but all have had their fair share of fireworks. No one takes it as seriously as the US. I’m not sure if it stems from our love of guns, bright lights, or drinking, but apparently the louder the better.
This past New Year was no different. Everywhere I looked, fireworks were going crazy. I live in the country so of course the locals were lighting them off too. Except one neighbor- there’s always one isn’t there? You know them (you might even be them!); they crap all over anything that disrupts their solitude or isn’t their idea. This particular neighbor took to NextDoor (shout out!) just after midnight on New Year’s Eve (less than 10 mins after the ball dropped) to reprimand the neighborhood kids because ‘It’s midnight, and you’ve now woken up my 1 year old’. She went on and on about how she’s not sure if the neighbors just don’t have kids or if they have older kids and don’t remember the importance of sleep (talk about condescending). And that ‘it’s going to be a crappy day tomorrow for her family due to sleep disturbances’. Booo hoooo hooo. How ridiculous that she felt the need to get on a social networking site to chastise the neighborhood for celebrating a holiday. It wasn’t 3am; it was 12:10am.
But despite what this post may lead you to believe, I’m not a huge fan of fireworks. They can have a pretty negative impact on the local animals and wildlife. They are super dangerous and if the earlier mentioned neighbor had come out against fireworks for a cause that wasn’t so unbelievably selfish, I totally would have gotten on-board. It’s just the fact that everyone else is supposed to walk on egg-shells and not disrupt her little bubble that gets me fired-up. As mothers, we learn quickly. And one thing in particular stands out to me the most; Pick Your Battles! There is no reason to alienate the entire neighborhood. Memories are long…. and winter is coming (Ha, just kidding).
