I had a no duh moment a few days ago.
I walked into my friendly neighborhood Tops Market, as I do far too much, and I saw a new display front and center. This was strange. The layout of this supermarket does not change much. But for whatever reason these products needed attention.
As I moved closer, I began to make out the writing on the packages. There were many of them in plastic piled on top of each other.
I thought, “Is that a firecracker?”
Yes. They were fireworks..
Pardon my virgin eyes. This is illegal. Or so I thought.
Well it was all my life until almost a decade ago according to news reports.
Maybe it was COVID or my at times absent mindedness or single mindedness but I had no clue this happened.
The change explains a few things though.
I've seen big white tents pop up at intersections and highways on ramps. I always wondered what was in them but never checked. Now I'll just assume they're combustible.
Growing up, I was always taught that you had to drive to a nearby state like Pennsylvania to get a cherry bomb or sparkler. In the neighborhoods I've lived in, fire crackers have gone from a rarity to normal. As has pot smoke, by the way, which was also recently legalized.
But the why is something I struggle with. Marijuana is a complicated issue. You could argue that at some point tons of jobs could be made from pot.
But I can't logically get there with fireworks. Everything about normalizing the usage of fireworks makes our collective quality of life worse.
Reach me at James@rochesteraccent.com or jamesbrowntv@gmail.com. Or leave me a message at 1-585-484-0339
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