Obligatory 4th of July Post
Fresh off the 2012 Fourth of July celebrations in Boston, here’s an obligatory post featuring fireworks and patriotism, with a dash of inclement weather for variety.
Being on fireworks duty for the Herald meant camping out along the river well in advance of the fireworks show — I’m talking about a 4:30 arrival for a 10:30 show. A lot of people come down to see this show, and if you don’t stake out a piece of real estate, you might not get an ideal shooting position.
At least that’s the theory, because a simple plan like that can get turned upside down when the Mass. State Police decide to issue an evacuation order because of impending lighting storms. Tasked with getting evacuation photos, while finding a dry, secure location after making a few friends along the way, I managed to get everything I needed from the event and got a nice soaking during the fireworks show for good measure.
But despite all of that, I had a blast. Here are the photos.
7/4/2012 -- CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Fireworks explode over the Charles River at Boston's 2012 Fourth of July celebration.
7/4/2012 -- CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Adam and Jo Bookatz of Cambridge huddle under an umbrella as the rain pours down during the fireworks portion of Boston's 2012 Fourth of July celebration.
7/4/2012 -- CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Fireworks explode over the Charles River at Boston's 2012 Fourth of July celebration.
7/4/2012 -- CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Eric Sherman, 13, of Pittsford, Vt., tracks the weather from under an overhang at an MIT building during an evacuation order from the Mass. State Police as thunderstorms moved through the area during Boston's 2012 Fourth of July celebration.
7/4/2012 -- CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Hundreds of attendees walk down Ames Street after the Mass. State Police issued an evacuation order due to thunderstorms at Boston's 2012 Fourth of July celebration.
7/4/2012 -- CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Judy and Eric Coughlin of Northboro huddle under an overhang at MIT as they wait out an evacuation order from the Massachusetts State Police as thunderstorms move through during the Boston Pops Fourth of July celebration.
And of course, 6 hours is a long time to be sitting around waiting for some fireworks to start. This is just one of the things I found folks doing to keep themselves occupied.
7/4/2012 -- CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Madeline Cleverly, 7, of Shrewsbury, skips rope along Memorial Drive for Boston's 2012 Fourth of July celebration.