Howdy,
So yesterday early morning I stated that I’d be volunteering in a fireworks booth in Turlock.
Yesterday early afternoon I meant to go in with an edit on that post that would have said something like, “strike that, change in schedule, so now I’m planning to sell fireworks tomorrow. Same time, same place.”
But I forgot until yesterday late night so figured it wasn’t worth bothering about at that time in the day gone by.
Now, that “tomorrow” was today.
And “today” didn’t quite go as expected either.
Today I was driving to the fireworks booth with my family in the car and got a call that the action was elsewhere, with inventory being taken and boxes of fireworks being loaded in trailers for hauling to The Rick Church booths. (FoodMaxx parking lot and first pull off from Fulkerth exit south east off of Hwy 99, if you’re interested in coming by and supporting our efforts and collecting an assortment of fireworks for setting off. For a boy from the dry foothills of Mariposa, this whole phenomenon of lighting self-purchased-and-self-arranged-dazzling-and-showering-show is quite the thing. Plus, maybe I’m a pyro. But who doesn’t have a little pyromaniac in them?)
Speaking of pyromaniacs, I mentioned that my family was with me, since Sarah planned to drop me off and run some errands with the boys. Well, Jasper and Titus got to watch as we opened a myriad of random assortments of fireworks to be inventoried. And. I. Kid. You. Not. It was like Christmas for them. They were so excited. I. Couldn’t. Even. Tell. You.
Anyway, they’re under aged, but very interested and engaged, wanting to know all about them and scanning the flyer for what we’ll (and any relative they can convince) buy. Jasper has the prices down and the calculator working, figuring out different configurations of total costs and how many commissioned chores they represent. It’s serious business.
So today again wasn’t about sitting in a booth and selling (or reading or writing while waiting for no customers this early in the process). Today was about inventory, carrying heavy boxes for loading, carrying boxes for unloading, setting up fireworks display in booths, prepping booths or afternoon inspection, carrying backup inventory back to trailers, wondering if we had any relieving shift of booth volunteers headed our way, packing one booth back up, carrying once-again full boxes for return into trailer and storage until tomorrow.
Because maybe tomorrow will be about selling fireworks. I don’t know that it will be for me, but it should be all forward from here. For me, it was about all that above and then buying. With my boys’ calculus charts and financial prospectus sheets as guide I was able to step up to (and inside) our booth and make some fun and frugal choices. And with that, we were the season’s first fireworks customers.
We’ve already had some fun with them.
In our parking lot I lit a spinning flower as somewhat of a surprise to J & T, and Jasper said, “Whoa!! We need to buy more of those!!” Ti was laughing and smiling in full agreement.
Budgeting might take a backseat with our boys and the pyrotechnics. Better watch out, G.G., Jasper’s compiling and growing list. And Ti smiles right along. Boys with eyes lit like a firework … in June and on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and Fourth of July.
—Billy
Reading. Writing. Lit.