That is the good part of being born is a country that wass born much before fireworks were introduced in Europe. Nobody cracks a bomb. China already have them by the time. On the other end, when there are regional parties, music and bad singing goes around all night long.... 

Another baseball question:

(sure, this thread is two years old, but what the hell)

When the score comes up, with the three different numbers, what does the third one mean? I know the first is the number of runs scored, the second is the number of hits recorded, but what is the third number?

Some broadcasts have also taken to adding a fourth number -- LOB, standing for "Left on Base", or the number of runners who reached base but failed to score for that team.

Tell me about it, "Friendly Fenway" where the Red Sox play is the most expensive ticket outside of the new Yankee Stadium, and once you pay the gas station owner your firstborn to park 6 blocks from the park...well you get the picture.
I stopped going to games when the worst seats in the park went over $20 a pop and I haven't been back since. I'd rather watch the games on TV anyway (they show replays, the food's cheaper, I never have to worry about parking, if it rains I stay dry and can watch something else and when they suck I can change the channel as well). I'll pay to go to a Worcester Tornadoes game (the local independent minor league baseball team) before  would take free tickets to Boston because of all of the hassles involved. Ken Burns can keep the atmosphere, I like money in my wallet and simplicity. 
Erik

Well, I'm getting to watch a lot more baseball now. The only channel my family had subscribed to, Setanta, went under a few weeks ago and we've had ESPN America on that channel until they come up with something to replace it. Even watched lacrosse. Wondered why you Americans liked it, then I saw the answer--you can hit people with the sticks, or whatever they're called. Just like ice hockey...:)

Typical, you've always got to bring weapons to a sport...:)

Pity I won't get to see Aussie rules or Gaelic football now, though...:(

That is a thing I've noticed. The one thing you like more than playing sports or watching them is talking about them. But we do the same thing over here, I guess--just start on the topic of football and you've got a massive number of fans having digs at others. 'Course, at the moment the target of choice is Manchester City, who are the richest club in football but can't get any real footballers to them. Kaka, E'too, etc., have all turned them down. Once it was learned I have a good left foot they offered me a contract, but I turned them down...:)

Four years in Germany gave me a great appreciation for football. I really learned to love it and get into it (although I never got to watch much Bundesliga because it was ONLY carried on Satellite TV -- imagine if 80% of Americans could not tune into the NFL every weekend!). But I loved watching Champions League and the international events. Good stuff. It actually meant a lot to me when the USA beat Spain a couple weeks ago. That's frickin' huge!

Yeah, I was impressed by America in the Confederations Cup. Of course, some pundits were complaining (in one of the TV books over here, it had listings of the final saying that "hopefully, the two best attacking teams will be in the final--Spain and Brazil"), but I'd have loved to have seen a US vs South Africa final. Of course, everyone would be moaning about it not being a beautiful game, but I'd much rather win 1-0 playing ugly than lose 5-2 playing beautiful football. West Brom tried the latter, and they finished bottom. Stoke played the former and almost ended up in the top half of the Premiership.

Of course, the Bundesliga is starting to become weaker than other European leagues (don't think their teams have got very far in the Champions League as of late), but well done to Wolfsburg for winning what I believe is their first championship.