May Daze

May the Fourth Be with You

Growing up Star Wars was a huge thing for me. It was the first time I remember waiting in line for a movie opening. 

It was unlike anything I'd ever seen before.  I was still pretty young, so I was easily impressed.
It was magical and ground-breaking on so many levels and I certainly am not alone with the effect it had on me, although I don't come close to being a hardcore fan.

Cinco de Mayo
It's been interesting now having traveled all over the country and lived and worked in several different states, how regional we can be about our holiday celebrations. Growing up in Los Angeles, Cinco de Mayo was a pretty big deal, Mardi Gras and Fat Tuesday was a non-event. 
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Now, having lived in Atlanta and New Orleans until just recently, I've gotten a different perspective on a few things. 

Obviously, Mardi Gras takes over NOLA and in Atlanta, well it's a bit more tricky. In 1862 while the defeat of the French army during the Battle of Puebla (Batalla de Puebla) was taking place in Mexico; we were having our own little conflict known as the Civil War.

Of course, I obviously had learned about the war in school but it's a completely different matter when you visit the battlefields and see confederate flags still waving proudly in people's yards. 
Seeing Stone Mountain for the first time clued me in on how some Southerners still felt about the War of Northern Aggression; but that's another story for another time.

The Ren Faire and more
Most important for me was May was when I'd probably go to the Renaissance Faire.  It was magical to me. I loved being transported to another time and of course there were the turkey legs which I looked forward to every year. It was also one of the first places I was able to drink. They rarely cared back then, so at 15 or so I was able to get myself some good ale. 
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May 5th is also the anniversary of when NASA launched the first American-manned space flight (1961) and the opening of Carnegie Hall (1891).