The last Offtop is getting thick and you all are a lazy bunch of hyenas, so I'll take on the burden. This 4th of July was the first time that I didn't go to a specific fireworks show and instead watched upwards of ten shows at once from the roof of a friend's apartment. Since LAh is both massive and segmented by neighborhood, we saw fireworks in Culver City, Santa Monica, Venice, Marina del Rey, Anaheim, Hollywood, etc.

Question 1: So for starters, how do you like to view fireworks? Are you a fan of directly underneath or do you prefer to view them from afar? Over the water or on land?

Here is a neat collection of the best fireworks photos taken by readers of the blog Lifehacker. Pretty neat.

The multiplicity of fireworks also reminds me of the story of San Gimignano in Tuscany. Like most of the towns in Tuscany, San Gimignano is a hilltop town as it made defending your home easier. San Gimignano is notable as there are seven towers rising above the town. Towers at the time were built in order to get a better view of potential attackers. Why seven? Instead of pooling together as one in the defense of their town, seven wealthy families built their own towers in what amounted to a pissing contest. Ours is bigger. Italians will be Italians. Question 2: Do you have any examples of a failure to collaborate resulting in something awesome and notable?

Question 3: What is your favorite summer barbeque food?

Question 4: What style of music do you most enjoy during the summer? I find my taste in music is somewhat seasonal, and summer sees the biggest spike in my hip-hop listening.

Of course, the usual topics are also encouraged.