Get ready for a fantastic Fourth of July weekend in the Coulee. The annual Festival of America, coming up at the park below the Visitor’s Center in Coulee Dam on July 4-5, will be an entertaining event with foot-stomping live music both evenings, plus the fireworks display off the top of Grand Coulee, starting at 10:30 p.m., on Friday night, July 4. And, once again, opening at 11 a.m. each day, the event features artisans and craftspersons and their special wares and foodies; take note, some of our favorite food vendors will be in the park too.

If you have an itch to do some thrift shopping in the Coulee later this week, you’re in luck! On Friday and Saturday, July 4-5, you’ve got two advertised sales, one in Coulee Dam and another in Elmer City, plus an estate sale in Grand Coulee on Saturday, July 5 and the every Saturday sale at the Vets Center in Electric City, plus the Saturday Market’s going on in Grand Coulee. So, get out there. Make the loop and, as always, there’s bound to be some new, gently used or junky stuff at the sales this weekend, but not for long because that urban legend tells us that the good stuff sells out fast.

“So many choices, so little time.” That’s a comment I heard from a thrift shopper/friend of mine who was making the rounds (yard sales) last Saturday. When I caught up to her, she was having a great time, looking over the merchandise at the Coulee Community Church’s rummage sale in Coulee Dam. She was about ready to (take your choice): throw in the towel, call it a day, or give up the ghost, having spent her weekly thrift shopping allowance. But, she was on a roll, so I spotted her a $5 bill, which helped her purchase some treasures for her grandkids. How fun was that?

And finally, I discovered that the Prairie Look, that new fangled home decorating genre, has also been touted as the Farmhouse Look. the Primitive Look, and the new Country Look, so let’s just call it — the Whatever Look! So many choices.

Have fun celebrating our independence, our freedom.