july 4, the waking hours

eventually, the other cabins began to show signs of life: the baron and the husband caught the scent of freshly brewed coffee and heard murmured conversation across the wide, wide lawn. the three of them visited the husband's parents cabin, bummed some coffee off of them, then made their way down to the water. it was tucker's first time at a beach, and he was first tentative but was eventually cajoled into the water.

july 4 made good on its promise of sunshine, so the baron spent a fair part of the late morning/early afternoon splayed out on a towel on the lawn or reading her book in an adirondack chair (the baron loves to sun herself, and her concession to age and weight was a one piece bathing suit). tucker and the husband visited her occasionally, but spent most of their time wandering around the property, mingling with the children or playing in the waves. by early afternoon, the baron was ready for a change of scenery. tucker was, by this time, so comfortable with the water that he joined her at the end of the dock:


the afternoon passed quickly, and soon the baron retreated to the cabin to make dinner for the husband - being among the only vegetarians in the family, the baron and the husband made all their own meals (which, the baron will tell you, provided ample excuse for them to avoid mealtimes where everyone was present: vegetarianism, right for so many reasons). after cooking and eating, they made their way to the road where - as schroon lake tradition dictates, the annual july 4th parade was set to begin.

the parade is as you, reader, might expect - a small town affair - though the highlights included an army of chevettes (each with its own unique decorations, including one that had a tree truck attached to the chevette's roof) and a juggler riding a unicycle. lowlights included a group of young men and women, riding on a flatbed truck, dressed in tuxedos and gowns styled circa 1985 and wearing vacant smiles. high weirdness.

after the parade, everyone retreated to their various cabins to prepare for the night's activities: fireworks on the public beach. the baron, the husband, and tucker decided to cap their daylight hours off the same way they started them, with a walk around the town.