Fire Over Aiken

The city of Aiken along with Atlantic Broadband and a couple other sponsors put on a fireworks display tonight for the 4th. They held it at the Western Carolina Fairgrounds which just so happens to be right across the street from the Valve Store(tm). The company was kind enough to open the normally closed on weekends gates and let the employees park away from the maddening crowds of the city’s hoi poloi.

The weather folks were all week calling for a big chance of rain for this evening. And they were right. It rained pretty good at our house at around 7:30 then quit, but a look at the Weather Channel’s future estimation showed a large cell of nasty thunder boomers arriving around 9:00, or about 15 minutes ahead of the planned firework display starting time.

We decided to drive up to work anyway. It is a short trip and the weather guessers have been wrong once or twice before. There were about 10 cars in the lot when we arrived and about a half dozen arrived after us. While were waiting for the show, Donna and I visited with a few folks and right on cue at 9:00 o’clock it started to sprinkle and few lightning flashes lit the clouds. But instead of getting increasing worse the rain stopped and held off for almost all of the 20 minute show. Towards the end it started to sprinkle again and on the drive home it did rain some more, but it never did get real nasty.