Teenagers were playing with fireworks at the next-door neighbors house last night when a rocket took off sideways and set fire to a bush under one of my front windows.  I heard people yelling "Fire!" outside so I ran downstairs and got to the front door to find a big cloud of gray smoke.  Not being completely ignorant, they'd had a fire extinguisher handy and had already put out the flames.  But I still went around back and got the hose and wet everything down.

This morning, I went back out to wash the white powder off the driveway and inspect the damage... and the grandmother, who was the only sensible adult at home next door last night, saw me outside and came over to apologize.  She seemed sincere, and she had put an end to any more fireworks and ordered everyone inside last night after it happened, so I guess this will remain one of those "we're lucky no one got hurt" things.

The damage is all confined to one arborvitae bush - I think the rocket must have gone through it and set the needles on the ground on fire - and all I can do now is wait and see which parts die off and which parts recover.  It's a pretty big bush and only a couple branches got blackened.  These shrubs have taken a pretty hard beating in the winter and bounced back... so we'll see what happens.  

Tags: house, stupidity