Weather Watch: Mostly clear weather arrives in time for Guy Fawkes

Photo / Kevin Hooper

I'm probably one of the few New Zealanders that prays for rain and wind (combined) during the week of Guy Fawkes sales. I have grown to dislike this stupid celebration. Most of us have grown up with it but it's not until you explain to someone from America what it's actually all about that it sounds so weird. I'm not sure what's weirder - the fact we burn an effigy on a bonfire like it was still the 1600's or the fact that we still celebrate this bizarre 400 year old tradition.

But to me it's not about dumb kids who get minor burns (I was one of those kids that tried to make a fizzer - the name for the old crackers that didn't go off...so you'd split them in half and light the middle. I held it the wrong way around and it burnt my hand...dork)... to me it's about the kids who are creating small pipe bombs out of them, blowing up mailboxes, terrifying animals and setting hillsides alight.

When I was younger I thought Guy Fawkes was the most magical night of the year. These days while I still see the beauty in setting off fireworks it's ruined by the fact that not all kids are as stupid as I was when I was little - in fact they are smart and with the help of the internet they know how to buy a budget pack of fireworks, use all the gunpowder and create one massive bomb that is big enough to shake a house. It happens every year. As luck would have it while writing this blog some kids, still in school uniform, just blew up a home made cracker outside my house - the shell landed inside my property.

I have no idea why we need to have a lead up of sales for this event - why can't they just be sold on the one day?

I know I sound like a right stick in the mud but I'm tired of hearing of animals being abused, scrub fires being set off in windy conditions and hard working emergency services being kept busy by a few dick head teenagers (and probably older).

I don't think we should ban fireworks completely - but I do think we should have tighter sales restrictions rather than a guy on the side of the road selling them from his boot to anyone he wants...18 and over only? Yeah right.

My parents have a big Guy Fawkes party every year, in the safety of their rural property. Many families come and share a big BBQ then a bonfire is lit later on with fireworks. The fireworks are set off by protective parents and in the 20 years they've been running this event there has never been an injury - (my burn was well before this started!).

I wonder if the fact that we celebrate the death of someone who was trying to blow up parliament confuses kids a bit - seems like an odd way to celebrate a failed terrorism attack - by instead terrorising animals and older people who don't like the sounds.

In fact I'm sure over the past 400 years the Guy Fawkes celebrations across the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Newfoundland, Canada, have caused more damage to people, pets and property than his bomb would've done in 1605 had it ever gone off.

In January 1606 the Thanksgiving Act was passed - and commemorating the failure of Guy Fawkes and his mates blowing up parliament became an annual event. I'd prefer a day of "Giving Thanks" like the US and Canada has compared to Guy Fawkes. You can still have fireworks - but you celebrate peace and family rather than a religious nut job who was tortured, executed, buried, dug up, head cut off and placed on a spike.

But instead we chose to celebrate our freedom by blowing up a small part of it each year.

p.s. Weather doesn't look too bad this Friday and Saturday if you are hosting a safe Guys Fawkes evening at your place - may be a few showers on Friday in the North Island with windy conditions about Wellington - the forecast looks better for Saturday night.