Give Me Ice Cream or Give Me Death

The Declaration of Independence....gave liberty not alone to the people of this country, but hope to all the world, for all future time.

Abraham Lincoln


Personally I don't celebrate the 4th of July I opting to celebrate "Independence Day" which happens to fall on the 4th of July every year. This is an important distinction I believe since we celebrate Christmas Day not the "25th of December" -- Christmas has meaning of course as the birth of Jesus Christ which brought hope to the world while Independence Day served as the birthday of a new nation which was vastly different from any governments existing in 1776.

Independence Day this year was spent running a 5 mile race with my fiancee which was organized by Apple Valley Freedom Days, http://www.avfreedomdays.com/, followed by walking in our local parade with the owners of Kalli's Popcorn Shop who happen to be our neighbors. Kalli's not only sells popcorn but they also offer hard and soft ice cream including the "Flavor Burst" soft serve ice cream. I am a huge fan of the butter pecan but after trying the "blue goo" this week (which tastes like wedding cake frosting) I now have split loyalties :) Kalli's is a great small business story which I hope expands to other cities given their quality customer service and great products. I would rate them with a "4" (out of 5).

Speaking of ice cream here is some trivia I read in Life Magazine this week:

• In the summer of 1790 George Washington spent $200 on ice cream which is equal to $4,100 in today's dollars.
• The Italians created ice cream in the 17th Century -- question; but did Marco Polo steal this idea from the Chinese as he apparently did with other inventions such as noodles???
• The ice cream cone first appeared in 1904 at the St. Louis World's Fair
• Vanilla is still the nation's favorite flavor since it accounts for 26% of sales with chocolate at 12.9%. No statistics were available for "blue goo" but I am searching :)

Whether you say 4th of July or Independence Day please take a moment to reflect on what the Founding Fathers and Continental Army accomplished in the 1776 to 1789 time period to give us the freedoms we take for granted today such as the freedom to eat ice cream, own a firearm, the right to public assembly, shop at a book store, or blog about any subject imaginable.

I am thankful for these freedoms,

Todd