Today is July 4th – Independence Day. For most in the USA it is a day off work – a chance to enjoy the sunshine, have a barbeque, and watch some fireworks. For me, it is a chance to feel very British and hope that the people I meet don’t remember the year 1776 very well. For Heather, it is one of the busiest days of the year (the Reno Philharmonic is doing two different concerts in two locations).

I followed Heather along to one of these concerts (the free one, not the one that cost $55 a ticket). It was being held in a town called Genoa – allegedly the first settlement in Nevada. The event reminded me a lot of some of the village events I had been to back in Suffolk – except that, in Genoa, the BBQs were bigger, there was a full orchestra playing, and everyone was wearing red, white, and/or blue (on quite an extreme level).

The concert was brilliant. Not because of the music that was being played, but because of the atmosphere. The orchestra was wearing t-shirts and jeans, there were people eating picnics pretty much anywhere they could find a space, and everyone appeared to appreciate everything that was going on (in particular, the lady next to me was quite overjoyed at the cannons during the 1812 Overture).

So, I’ve decided that I like Independence Day. Nobody seems to care about its history (thank goodness), and instead they just spend a day being thankful for being where they are. For this reason, I now fully support Sufolk declaring independence from the UK (think of the hog roasts we could have!).