Ah, July...

Before you had a chance to think about it half of 2012 is in the books. We have a lot to look forward to this year and I’m sure I will have blinked and the New Year’s Day bowl games will be on my TV. Better watch how long I blink, I don’t want to miss everything.

When I look back on the Julys of my younger days I remember those great 4th of July picnics and of course the firecrackers we could get when they were still legal. We blew stuff up and I think my dad had as much fun being a kid as we were.

If I remember right, it seems to me that we always had a chance to go watch the Spokane Indians and when they had a fireworks show after the game it was certainly a bonus. We didn’t take those moments for granted and we were elated whenever we took that trip. I’m not sure how excited kids get these days but I know life was simpler then and making a kid happy didn’t take a whole lot.

One of the reasons we enjoyed those moments was because harvest was just a round the corner and we knew that we wouldn’t take a day off to go see the Indians play baseball. I don’t care how good they were or how many players we could name off the top of our heads the farm came first in late July. Looking back on it now it must have been a character builder because we are certainly characters now.

Things haven’t changed that much for the farmers of this area, getting the crop in is still job number one. How it’s done is far more different then than it is now. Thank God for technology.

As Major League baseball’s All-Star game approaches we hear about some of the players who have been snubbed by the two managers whose teams played in the World Series last year.

It always happens and always will especially when every Major League team has to have a representative on this elite team. If they take that stipulation away then maybe there would be fewer snubs however, there may be fewer viewers from those cities if their favorite player is home with family and not pinch hitting in the eighth inning or playing right field in the ninth as a defensive replacement.

This game was a must see for me when it became a night game. After a hard day’s work it was fun to sit down in front of the tube and watch a baseball game.

We’re spoiled nowadays when every night we can watch the Mariners or ESPN or WGN and catch a game being played somewhere. Trust me I appreciate this more so when the Mariners are playing well. Sometimes it’s just fun to watch a bunch of kids learning how to get better at the big boy level.

There’s a good chance that I won’t get to watch a baseball game live for a while or even see some fireworks. But I can still appreciate the 4th of July because it is an important time in our country’s history and we should never forget that fact.

So during this week in July, I hope you take a few moments to pray for our troops and pray for our country it will make you feel proud to be an American.