Frankincense, Myrrh, and...Gunpowder?

Photo of fireworks over Manila Bay in 2007 by Bullit Marquez for AP.

Yes, it's "fireworks season" here again. It began on Christmas Eve and ends when you've finally exploded all your ordinance some time in the week after New Year's (yes, they're still going). I've written about this before--everyone and their brother buys what in most countries would be totally illegal explosives and sets them off in their front yard, or better yet throws them at the poor slob driving by in his car. Oh, it's real fun. Last year, it was great to see the full Manila skyline go crazy with big, colorful (backyard) explosions. I wasn't able to take any good pictures (these were the pre-Panasonic Lumix days), but I found a nice substitute on the net. The picture above is actually capturing a rare moment, though--top quality fireworks set off by licensed professionals in a controlled environment. Yeah, that really didn't catch on.

Apparently our dogs, who had been left at home last year to hear the noise of the neighbors' pyrotechnics bounce off the walls and down the alleys, didn't have as much fun as we did. Grover, in fact, has developed a fear of fireworks. Grover! I know! She usually instills fear in others, not the other way around. So, this year--after staying up with her one night last week until 2:30 am while she whined, drooled, and hid under furniture--we decided to celebrate at the farm instead. There were still lots of fireworks going off in Cavite (and as I type this, there is still the random explosion in the distance right now), but they were at least a quarter mile from our kubo (and noise doesn't really echo off bamboo that well, thankfully).
The above picture shows Stephen serenading her on our porch last night. As you might expect, she had some pointers for him on his playing. Later, she curled into bed beside us all night (which is astounding for a not-so-affectionate dog), but otherwise did pretty well. I did notice after the huge series of explosions around midnight, there was yet another noise of the "season"--two separate ambulances at around 12:15 and 12:30 am. The front story of every paper today is likely some child's maimed hand, or some death caused by a stray bullet (if you shoot your gun in the air, the bullet's gotta come down somewhere). I've learned it's best to take cover and avoid provincial roads.
The dogs had a great time, as they always do on the farm. Jaya's still a frisbee maniac, though at some point we will have to cut it down big time or eliminate it altogether. He's getting older and more sore after every session. But don't tell him that yet. He's only eight. Well, that's the news from our little corner of the world.

Happy New Year from the Wallaces!