This year, we were invited along with some new and some dear friends from the neighborhood to go see the fireworks with them at the fairgrounds. Sounds good since our city puts on one HELL of a show around here. Then they include their RV, a BBQ, beer, chips, dips and another truck full of chairs - hey, it's a tailgate party now! We're there!
We pack up everything around dinnertime. We have kids with us, they are hungry. We figure that we all get there early, eat, clean up, stroll around the fairgrounds for the jumpy rides, etc. for the kiddos and then settle in later on for the main event - fireworks. Yes, we'd be in the parking lot all this time. No, we are not going inside with the crowds.
They have done this for years, apparently, to great acclaim. We're not a rowdy group either - just fun, with kids and a football flying around for fun.
The second we unload the vehicle after paying for our spots, we are told that we cannot tailgate although the gate staff said it was 'cool'. Awesome! Let's celebrate America, freedom and...wait a second...we have visitors.
Some 'event' services staff in bright yellow shirts come by. Two burly looking dudes. Guess what? We can't be on this side of the fence in the parking lot doing this tailgating stuff. What? We have to move? We pack up everything and move to the other side of the fence. Okay, unload and PARTY ON! The BBQ comes out, we light it, start the hot dogs, use the truck tailgate as a 'table' - unload the beers...Happy FOURTH of...oh, wait a minute - it's the police.
Apparently we can't be on THIS side of the parking lot if we paid to get into the OTHER side. Need to move as soon as the embers in the BBQ are gone and cleaned up. Yes officer, whatever. We eat, move to the other side of the damn fence where we started.
OKAY! We set up again, minus the BBQ now cooling off, with stuffed tummies and beverages for all! LET FREEDOM RING - are we ready for fun? Um, no, sorry, more event personnel coming up to us now.
NOW we can't drink out of glass anything - including the Coke or Beer bottles. Okay, we understand, no problem. We pull out the red and gold tumbler cups. Problem solved!
God Bless America! Happy Birthday America!!! But wait...motorcycle cops show up...
Yeah, we can't DRINK beer OUTSIDE the vehicles. Oh, and in order not to look like we are tailgating, we must be in the RV or in the truck with the tailgate UP. All of us.
I thought we were in America, now it's sounding like another country with too many freaking rules. Keep in mind that we are with the following people: Firefighters, retired firefighters, Army infantry and upstanding citizens of the area. We are not hoodlums or have a ton of people scattered all over the place, causing trouble. We are families with KIDS, properly dressed, with nice stuff.
More event staff visit us with smiles on their faces. We all roll our eyes at this point and wait for the next demand. Now we must pay to get into the event in order to watch the fireworks. Didn't we just pay for parking and have we not just brought our kids inside (they were free, we had to pay to get in) the event area? Yes, we are told, but that's the rules.
Oh, and can they swing by for a beer afterwards?
Seriously?
The police keep coming by asking us to do this, do that, not to do whatever...we feel like third graders all evening. Third graders with beer, anyways.
Finally, the sun goes down a bit and LOADS of folks show up, all tailgating, all drinking bottled beer, etc. We FINALLY get to enjoy the Fourth of July while watching the beautiful fireworks that we waited so long to see. I had an idea that night - for the fairgrounds and the city to sell permits for $20 each parking spot for RV's for tailgating with a list of rules - no glass bottles, no underage drinking, no fireworks near cars, etc. to go along with it.
I believe that THIS way we can all have fun and nobody has to go around policing normal families trying to have a good time on the Fourth of July - you know, to actually enjoy their freedoms on that day.
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