Barbecue, Baseball, Beer, and Fireworks--the perfect National Holiday

Although Independence Day commemorates the establishment of democracy in our country--a serious event--the Fourth of July has become a day of patriotic fun. For me this means barbecue, baseball, beer, and of course, fireworks. We live near Kannapolis, North Carolina, home of the single-A baseball team and Chicago White Sox farm team, the Kannapolis Intimidators (the team was once owned by hometown hero Dale Earnhardt). This year luck was with us, as the Intimidators were in the midst of a home series, with games (all followed by fireworks) scheduled for July 3, 4, and 5. On the third we saw homeruns, double-plays, a grand slam by first baseman Mark Fleisher, and a much rarer treat when second-baseman Dale Mollenhauer hit for the cycle. And we had fireworks. And we won the game. But sadly, Independence Day itself brought thunderstorms with torrential rains and a rained out game. The next day, though, did make up for some of the disappointment as we had a double-header.
For South Africa a national holiday celebrating the establishment of democracy in their country only recently became possible. I hope that 232 years after South Africa's first democratic election it is still celebrated there.