As I hinted at in an earlier post, I don't really know what to do on the Fourth of July. I don't really care about fireworks, I don't like going to the lake or the park or what-have-you on a day it's guaranteed to be crowded, and if I had my druthers I'd be cooking out every weekend anyways.

One of these years I hope to make a batch of Because This is America!!! Cheesecake, but otherwise I have no plans or expectations for the Fourth. It's strange, actually, when you consider how much I like Halloween, another holiday that's essentially a national party day.

My plans this year remained nebulous right down to the wire, but because I couldn't be sure what everyone else would have going, on Thursday I had some people (read: the three couples with whom I spend about 90% of my non-Halo social time) over for a cookout and some rum. Theoretically this was also a Rum Party. However:

1. I didn't tell everyone that beforehand
2. I know a theme party when I see it, and this weren't no theme party.

Whatever. It was a good time; it may not have been as rip-roarin' as I might've hoped, but I can have a drinking-drinking party any ol' time.

I did have lots of rum in any case, so Jenna and I made mojitos. It pretty satisfying to finally get rid of some of my homegrown mint: according to most gardeners, mint is basically just a tastier form of kudzu.

Speaking of. The garden is now heavily fortified. I put up some thin-gauge chicken wire, bent down the fence so it's harder to climb over, sprinkled all my plants with cayenne pepper, and put some human hair on the ground for good measure. Yesterday my dad gave me some repellent. And the neighbor told me the other day that he'd try to live-trap the woodchuck.

(Unfortunately, in addition to his kind offer to catch my foe, the neighbor also made it clear that he wants us to move the garden. He agreed that it would be OK if I waited until the end of the season... but still, this is going to be rough. I understand his position completely, but I really, really wish I'd found out about this before I filled the frame with dirt.)

My Fourth — the rest of the weekend, really — was low-key. Because some notice needed to be paid, on Friday night I went to Ben and Nora's for some hookah and celebratory libations. Oh, and Ben and I played some Army of Two before Nora came home from work: huzzah for co-op games.

Less socially: I finally got around to watching 30 Rock (and I like it), and I was able to find some more My Boys episodes I hadn't seen. That's right, I'm watching a TBS show now. What can I say, the banter is entertaining.