Hey Babe, It's the Fourth of July!

You know you want to eat snacks and watch fireworks.

No matter where you identify on the political spectrum, we can all agree it's been a weird year to be an American. Whether you’re in favor of the current machinations of the political machine or not, though, it’s nice to be reminded that there are some really great things about this enormous, sweaty nation of ours. Like jazz! And reality television!

Willie Nelson at ACL Festival in 2016 (Photo by David Brendan Hall)

Celebrate all things that make this country great with one of the many, many Fourth of July celebrations happening this Wednesday in Austin.

Jam Out with Uncle Willie

Every year, you tell yourself that next year is the year you’ll go to Willie Nelson’s annual Fourth of July concert and barbecue. And every year you put it off again. Well, Willie’s not getting any younger, and neither are you, so you might as well hang out in the parking lot and celebrate a great tradition of Texas Tailgating.

HEB’s Fourth of July at Auditorium Shores

You might want to go to this event because it’s totally free, which makes it a low stakes way to roll out a blanket and gnaw on a couple of slices of watermelon as you watch things explode. You might want to go because it’s the best attended celebration in all of Texas. Or, you might want to go to honor the fact that you probably buy most of your groceries in a store owned by a guy named Butt. Whatever floats your boat. Start out at the ABGB bash to join a group bike ride to the festivities.

The Annual Hops & Grain Fourth of July Bash

It’s a little more chill over at Hops & Grain, where every Fourth of July they celebrate by offering a special commemorative “glass” (Why the air quotes Hops & Grains? What are you hiding?) that gets you three pours for twenty bucks, plus the metal stein to take home. It’s the perfect pairing with an evening of hanging out and eating snacks from Food Monger.

Red White & Blues at Geraldine's

For those of us on the less enthusiastic side of the current political situation, spending an evening staring out at the Austin skyline listening to some live blues artists delivering their best tragic crooning and drinking beers sounds like the most American pastime of all. This swanky annual bash has all that, plus fried chicken and a screen printed image of a turkey in a hat. If that doesn’t cheer you up, what will?

Suck Eggs at Haymaker

If those don't work, you have one option left, my friend. Every year, the good folks at Haymaker host some kind of eating contest. What started out as five minutes of strangers stuffing pie in their faces has turned into a pickled egg challenge where contestants try to top Paul Newman’s boast in Cool Hand Luke by swallowing down as many house pickled habanero eggs as their stomachs can handle. We bet you can eat all the eggs.

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