I had tears in my eyes . I had to put my t-shirt over my head . No shit , I was feeling it big time . This is America at its best . The 4 th of July . Coney Island . Joey Chestnut , the all American athlete , the worlds best . My body had goose bumps all over , a little tremor too .When Joey stuffed down his 75th hotdog in 10 minutes I nearly vomited . In fact I dry retched repeatedly . Emma yelled at me to run to the bathroom , but I stayed put . It didn’t help that I was a little hungover, but the viewing was compelling . She changed the Chanel on the tv but I demanded this all American institution be switched back on . I toughed it out just like these awesome competitors .When the commentator called it a battle between man and dog ,I laughed out aloud between retching , creating a guttural burp that brought back memories of IPAs and bbq chips from the night before . The tears really rolled this time .This was the world championship for eating and Joey is the Michael Jordon of the sport . What else do you on the nations biggest day ? Totally normal ,I say .
The COVID situation has worsened quite dramatically over here .I know the same thing is happening in Australia too ,but gee it’s not looking good here . I’m guessing you’ve already seen this on the news feed .The beaches , bars and restaurants are closed for the July 4 weekend . It’s a total shame but I begrudgingly admit it’s necessary. Of course Murphy’s law comes into play . We have perfect weather and a juicy new swell , but you just can’t touch it .
This time last year we ( Ash ,Al and Tim ) were down watching the annual iron man event . I was particularly looking forward to getting down there early to watch the whole race ; a 1 mile run , a 1 mile board paddle , finishing with a 6 can ( beer ) chug . Unfortunately the 47 year tradition won’t happen this year . At least I got to dry retch again this year ,only this time it was watching guys stuff down wet hotdogs and not some iron man competitor bent over vomiting into the sand .
Todays our 4th year in California celebrating the 4th of July . I was looking forward to this day . Each year the enthusiasm grows . This year felt like something big was brewing .With the community coming out of lockdown , a full moon and a hot weekend forecast ,it was set up for a memorable day ….and then the numbers went up ,and kept on going . The writing was on the wall . The shut down was called . It would’ve been one hell of a spectacle on the South Bay beach front .This old pervert would’ve been out there with sunglasses on and phone cocked ….ahhh well not be .
I never thought we’d get a letter from the White House with Donald Trumps signature , but holy shit we did . I thought the stimulus cheque would only go to American citizens , but we got one too . I feel a little guilty on this one but I’m pretty happy that I’ve got a photo to prove that the Don has sent us a letter . With Qantas and Virgin not flying to the US , reality has started to set in …..we’ll be here for a while and also holidays back to Australia are unlikely any time soon . The letter from the White House feels more than the content that is written in it . It feels like a recognition of permanency .
This July 4 we stayed low , visited our Aussie neighbours for a couple of beers and settled back to watch the night unfold from our balcony . From girls in Red white and Blue bikinis roller balding down the road ( as they do ) ,to guys in star spangled bannered speedos with cowboy hats we were still entertained . As the night approached the fireworks started and then kept on coming . They were not allowed this year but that’s like holding a red rag to a bull over here . Emma and I sat on the balcony ,looked at each other and laughed . If you closed your eyes for a minute you could easily imagine yourself on the edge the frontline of a battlefront . The bangs , blasts and whistles continued well into the night with literally not a seconds silence for hours . You gotta laugh , fire works are illegal in some suburbs but you can buy them legally in a neighbouring suburb ,from there it’s no stopping people once it gets dark . I think July 4 reminds me of New Year’s Eve in Australia , with Street parties , bbqs and fireworks .
For now dawgs , another July4 bites the dust . Even though restrictions closed things down it was still an entertaining day and night .
aussiehowieinla 