Yup, Mr Schneider and his family and friends put on a fireworks display tonight. It lasted an hour and a half, with three creshendoes and a grand finale.
The whole town - 125 people - parked their cars at the ball field, and took blankets and went into the ball field to lay on their backs and watch. Ooohs and ahhhs and cheers - and some folks who stayed in their cars honked their horns and yelled at every big display. Cannon shells, Shower shells, mortars, all of every firework you can see every and anywhere else, and lots of them.
And the town paid... nothing. No taxes in this town, just in the county and state. The folks get together and donate money, have raffles (pooh on you, SC - NE has a lottery but allows casinos and private and public raffles too) and everyone pitches in to make things work. Everyone brought something to the town picnic first, then everyone piled into their trucks and went to the ball fields.
It cost us from $5000 to $10,000 every time we used to put on a fireworks display. Of course that didn't include the pay for the fre trucks and police officers standing by, etc; that was just for the pyrotechnicians and the fireworks themselves. Here, Mr Schneider and his group got together and put on the show for their own town. No outsiders had to come in and light them off. No cops were any where around - they simply weren't necessary. The volunteer fire department stood by, of course - a grass fire here means hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost revenue. Since the volunteers are ranch hands, they know what they are doing...
Know what else there wasn't?
No graffiti spraypainted on the public toilets. No damaged volleyball nets, basketball nets or backboards. No boomboxes blaring music louder than anyone could talk. No rude spoiled brats screaming, cursing, running past or into, or bothering others. Just a lot of laughter, a lot of talk, and several pickup games of volleyball.
When the fireworks were over, everyone walked back to their cars, laughing and talking. No one pulled in front of anyone. Everyone waved politely for others to walk by. No one revved engines or squealed tires on the way out of the fields.
1600 miles and $10,000 away from selfishness, greed, wanton destructiveness, and casual cruelty; where people expect their gubbermint to pay for their own constant entertainment, police and fire protection, children, and lives. I am a stranger in a strange land...
1 comment:
What a foreign and strange concept. I never knew that existed. Are you sure you are still in the US? LOL
Yes, there are places where people are still honest, decent and hard working and don't expect everything to be handed to them on a silver platter and then ask, "that's it??" Gald you have found such a place.
Post a Comment