I have many fond memories of setting off fireworks as a kid. I also used to get shopping bags of magnesium shavings from my friends, and igniting them in all kinds of scenarios, some of which have led to personal eye damage. For those of you who don't know, magnesium fires emit ultraviolet light that is damaging to the eye. I also used to manufacture my own explosives, as a teenager (yes I was that friend of your son- the one who got burned when we manufactured that sulfuric acid!). I also have hearing problems as a result, though it may be from not using hearing protection when I was into drag/street racing cars- another vice I have since overcome). Hard to sort it all out, you know? At some point in our lives, we have to realize that the things we did in our youth are actually deleterious to our health, and not to let our children do them. This may mean that the things we did back in the day are no longer acceptable for our children. OR, we need to train them on the appropriate protective equipment, like when I made them wear when we went to the gun range.
If you get to thinking you’re a person of some influence, try ordering somebody else’s dog around.
