Day 16 - July 4, 2006

July 4th is when my family has their annual picnic. The picnic is really more a party, because it has table seating and is in a family member's back yard, not a park. It's been at various family member's homes over the years, and actually if I'm not mistaken, started as a family get together for the family of one of my great uncle's wife.

This year it was in Orange County in a lovely canyon. There was a pool, and a really lovely back yard. The nice thing about my family reunions are that they started with a no alcohol policy. Sicne then, we've had beer at some of the parties, and it was no big deal. I feel this earlier history kind of set the tone, because unlike the family parties of my friends, there have never been really embarrassing "scenes" or out of control behavior. Every is really cheerful, and very polite and in a sincere likeable way too. I used to being more self-conscious at the parties when I was younger, but I find as I'm older and more self-confident, most of those issues were about me, and not about my relatives.