Preach brother preach. Amen to that.

The only thing that bothers me about Memorial Day is its commercialization. The Memorial Day Sales/Blowouts etc. that in my mind shift the focus away from what should (in my humble opinion) be a more solemn day of remembrance. I'm also not sure that consuming "large quantities of grilled cow" and Budweiser is appropriate either, but hey, its America, and it is what it is...

Thanks for reminding us!
 

Nice post, Doc.
Wanderer, let's not forget what is done to every holiday, not just Memorial Day.
Christmas and Super Bowl are practically interchangable, the way each holiday is treated. I take that back, Superbowl is much more important.
 

I spend every Memorial Day weekend at a hotel in Palm Springs, with my extended family and occasionally friends of the family. We spend most of the time lazing by the pool in the hot sun, eating, and boozing. Sometimes I catch an NBA playoff game, but I always catch some of the Memorial Day shows. Without fail, these shows get tears out of me. God bless those brave men and women who fight for our country.

On the way home, we stopped by the big dinosaurs (you know what I'm talking about if you've ever driven that stretch of the I-10). We discovered a local church was given out free hot dogs, chips, and soda. A band was singing Jesus tunes. These church people - I don't want to put them down, but they did not seem like an affluent bunch. My wife was so touched by their generosity that she gave them all the cash she had on hand. Maybe twenty minutes later, as I waited for my son to come down out of the T. Rex, a (Native American?) woman came up to me to make sure I knew about the free food they were giving away. I thanked her and then made up my mind to donate all the cash I had on hand.

You can miss the beauty and poignancy of Memorial Day if you're not paying attention, but it is truly a great holiday. I really enjoyed mine and I hope you did too.
 

Wanderer: Thanks. What Cruisin-Mom said.

Cruisin-Mom: I suspect we’re more jaded here on the left coast. I bet in the middle of the country they do Memorial Day right.

Oven: What a beautiful story. I spent the day visiting my sister and her family, and my parents. My dad’s aunt has been ill recently and is in a nursing home not far from all of them, so I took the opportunity to visit her too. Sadly, I did nothing to commemorate the day specifically or teach my kids about its significance. Last year we went to a veterans’ cemetery. I’ll have to do better next year.
 

Hey, that last line's familiar... it's taken straight from the soundtrack of Team America World Police:

Freedom isn't free
It costs folks like you and me
And if we don't all chip in
We'll never pay that bill
Freedom isn't free
No, there's a hefty f*&^$^n' fee.
And if you don't throw in your buck 'o five
Who will?


(*)>
 

Birdwoman: The allusion was unintensional, but I like it.

America! F%^& yeah!
 

Bean -

I think you meant "unintestinal"
 

actually I meant uni-testicle.
 

I knew that was coming the moment I clicked "Login and Publish."