Don: Ah, 4th of July weekend. Which for me means one of those exciting 6 lone holiday days I get since I left the public sector. I will be savoring it by eating some half smokes off my grill from Red Apron and doing [redacted]-all for the totality of the day. We’ll be experiencing the fireworks the way that has become our tradition – watching the New York display on tv. I miss the DC display, but I no longer can walk to a non-crazed (go to the crowdtacular mall? hahahahahahahahah no thanks, waiting in line for portapots is more patriotism than i can manage) location and watch the Capitol display with my own eyes. Since the alternative is WETA’s Explosive Racism Spectacular I’ll just swallow my hatred of NYC for an hour.

Rachel: The 4th of July falls on a Friday this year which means HELLO LONG WEEKEND! Looking forward to that. I’m also looking forward to the Cubs being in town for a weekend series against the Nationals. As some of you may or may not know, I hail from Chicago originally so this is one of my favorite events of the baseball season in D.C. The last time the Cubs were in town on the 4th, it was 2007…if memory serves me right. That game was at RFK Stadium. Dimitri Young hit a grand slam in that game, Matt Chico pitched, and the Nats beat Chicago 6-0. This Nats team has changed quite a bit since that summer, so I look forward to seeing how this series pans out.

Fedward: Last year we had just closed on our house and had to spend the 4th weekend packing, but we took the time to head to the roof of our apartment building for one last blast of Petworth/Park View neighborhood fireworks at eye level.  This year is the first we’ll actually be spending in the house, but having lived in the neighborhood for four previous 4ths we already know what to expect from the neighbors (which actually started a couple weeks ago).  We weren’t really planning to leave the house, much less the neighborhood, but we’ve been offered a pair of tickets to Friday’s Nats game so we might actually get out for that.  We might also walk over to the Petworth-adjacent Soldiers’ Home for their annual celebration. Saturday afternoon we’ll head up to the AFI Silver for Lawrence of Arabia (related: the whole Alec Guinness Centennial looks awesome). On the live theatre docket: Side Show at the Kennedy Center and Private Lives at STC’s Lansburgh. We’ll round the weekend off with brunch at the Passenger, because that’s what we do.

Tom: Independence Day is always my favorite holiday of the year. Some people love Christmas, or Easter or Flag Day or Armistice Day, but me, I’m an Independence Day guy. I’ll be making ice cream first thing in the morning with my Kitchen Aid stand mixer and some local fruits, probably cherries, before plotting the rest of the weekend’s adventures. I may go for the reading of the Declaration of Independence, I may opt for a more personal expression and go for a bike ride, but overall, I will celebrate the brave that passed before us and declared this one nation, indivisible.

Mosley: Ah, the Fourth. Like Tom, it’s one of my favorite, favorite days out of the year.  And with a three day weekend, I’ll actually be able to get out for it too!  On the 5th I’m definitely going to the AFI but for decided lower brow entertainment: they’re starting there Totally Awesome ’80s movie schedule and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is playing.  Call me what you will, but I prefer to think of myself as a kid at heart.  Other than that, I’m hoping to get out on the Anacostia for some kayaking, weather be damned.  I try to do it at least once a summer, and the weekend of the 4th is a great excuse to do it.  I launch out of Bladensburg Waterfront Park and paddle all the way down to RFK; it’s amazing.

Jenn: It wouldn’t be the Fourth of July without a stroll to Bloomingdale to watch the incredible 360-degree view of fireworks viewable from a dear friend’s roofdeck. There’s just nothing like watching the city’s celebration unfold, from the official explosions to the crazy neighborhood displays. I love fireworks, plain and simple, they bring out the little kid full of wonder. I’ll probably also squeeze in a viewing of that old chestnut 1776, a musical my brother and I used to quote at each other as we danced around the backyard waving sparklers. Speaking of movies, Fedward reminds me that AFI is celebrating the centennial of one of my all-time favorite actors, Sir Alec Guinness, with a retrospective starting this weekend and running the next few months. There’s a treasure trove of performances to catch! This weekend it’s Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, and Lawrence of Arabia (oh definitely, if you haven’t seen Lawrence of Arabia on the big screen in glorious 70mm, get yourself to AFI Friday or Saturday!). And I’ll also be celebrating democracy by participating in dog & pony dc’s rehearsal of their immersive town hall meeting, Beertown, before they head up to NYC to perform for the Lincoln Center Directors Lab next week (go DC theater pride!). A nice, relaxing weekend with a side of culture. My favorite.

Don: Other than the possibility of some thunderstorms – which can be fun sometimes – this is looking like a nice weekend to be outside, what with the highs in the low 80s. So of course my slate has a lot of indoors stuff. I’m pre-weekended it at Union Kitchen on Thursday for the ‘Chups launch party shindig. I was a Kickstarter backer so I had rewards to pick up and District Donuts – soon to come to Barracks Row – to sample. (Verdict: YUM) Friday night I’m going to a dog going away party. Yes, really. Saturday is wide open, but Sunday at 5 I’m going to mosey over to Hill Country BBQ where our own Rachel is going to be a part of a deconstruction of country music  How can I resist a variety of performers trying to boil things down to the identified 7 themes of country music? “The Demon Drink Has Been My Ruin” is the category that speaks to me.

Tom: Weekend! Our friends are having a low country boil out in the foothills, so we’re looking at a weekend out in the wilds of Virginia. There’s a good chance we’ll hit the cute markets in Aldie, which dates back to the early 1800s. There’s some good barbecue out there, too, which means we’ll get lunch there before heading out to Middleburg. Did you know there’s a library for angling, equestrian and field sports there? Yeah, me neither. But there is. I hear great things about the spa at Salamander Resort, but I think that’s too rich for this weekend. See you in the country!

Esther:  Well now that Bat Boy has closed at 1st Stage (and what an amazing run it was!  If you missed it, shame on you DC.  You missed a great show!), I have time to be out and about in DC.  My weekend will begin on Friday viewing a little Quicken Loans National Golf tournament at Congressional Country Club.  Saturday will be spent on the National Mall at the semi-annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival, after which I plan on heading over to the Banana Cafe & Piano Bar on Capitol Hill for some of the best Cuban and Puerto Rican food in town.  Sunday, I’m going to Jazz on the Riverfront at the Capitol Riverfront, overlooking the Anacostia River, since there will be wine and beer tastings and chef demonstrations.  Food, alcohol, and summer weather.  Sounds like a perfect summer weekend to me!

Rachel: Busy weekend ahead! But what else is new? Lots of concerts to try and hit starting Friday night including Tiffany Thompson’s final full band show at Ebenezers Coffeehouse before moving to Nashville and The Beanstalk Library at Iota Club & Cafe (in Arlington). Between trying to attend rock shows, I’ll be sending off a friend who’s moving to Pittsburgh with a celebration at Ri Ra in Georgetown. Then Saturday, I’ll do my best to make it to DC9 because Jonny Grave & The Tombstones, Benny, AND Rocky and the Pressers are all on the same lineup. Sunday will be a frantic day as I bounce between playing in my first Flashband at Hill Country BBQ (the theme is “The 7 Songs of Country.” I’m super stoked.) and trying to catch Don Kim’s EP release at Iota. So try and catch me if ya can!

Tiffany: Thursday through Sunday, I am between jobs, so my weekend started early. Since World Cup isn’t my thing, I’ll probably head to E Street Cinema for a showing of Belle. Thursday evening was be dinner at Brookland’s Finest with my visiting brother so he could meet his nephew. Friday I’m definitely getting aloo gobi for lunch at Naan & Beyond (it’s delicious and they only make it on Fridays). Saturday morning, I’m hoping the baby goats will be visiting the Historic Brookland Famers Market at Monroe Street Market, because that sounds like the perfect thing to do on a Saturday morning with a 9 month old. Rural Virginia in the afternoon and evening for relaxation and low country boil. Sunday? Rest, of course. Don’t want to start a new job with those “I’ve got a baby at home” bags under my eyes, after all.