Give Me Fireworks Or Give Me Death 2 Part 2: The Fan-Club
Now, in the first Give Me Fireworks Or Give Me Death installment, Noah’s girlfriend at the time coined that phrase based on Noah and my love for fireworks. The first time she saw our love for fireworks was about a year before (2021) when I went on a double date with them and my ex, about 45 minutes away to see fireworks.
The reason we had to go 45 minutes away was because 2019 was the last year that the realtor who funded our local community’s fireworks planned on doing them. On the night of July 3rd, 2025, after Dad fixed the scissor lift. I found out that a committee had been formed, and at the last minute, they managed to get enough funds to put our local fireworks back on!
That night, the Andersons came over to my parents’ house to sleep, Aspen made drinks, and we all played games, well into the night. The next morning, Arden, Marshall, Aspen, James, Kid, and I went to a coffee shop called Roosevelt Coffee for a late breakfast. When everyone had left, I got in my car to return to my parents' house. Unfortunately, as soon as I parked, my car stopped working!
Because I couldn’t go and get Noah, he had to use his blind transportation service to get to Meadow Park Drive. We went to our neighbors, the Crawfords’ (Stephen, Robin, Megan, and Rachel‘s) house for dinner. My family, Paige, Noah, and I spent the dinner mingling with everyone. Noah and I, in particular, talked to Ryan about the new EP that Cousin Simple is putting out for the rest of the year.
The fireworks started at 10, so at 9:45 we walked down to Whetstone. We made our way to a field. When the fireworks started, however, we realized that we were definitely not close enough, and trees were blocking our view. “Okay, guys,” Mom decided, “let’s move a bit closer!”
We all stood up, and I followed everyone from behind as I guided Noah. Five minutes later, we were resituated, and Noah pulled out his phone and opened his voice memos. “Hey Fan Club,” he said into his phone, “I’m here with Mitch and his family at the Whetstone fireworks! Anything you want to say, Mitch?”
I knew he recorded a lot of his life on voice memos, but I never realized he had an audio journal. I laughed, leaned in, and said, “Give me fireworks or give me death!”
While I try to teach a lesson in each of these installments and have a major theme about autism in each book, my writings also double as a diary for me. Noah recording things live has inspired me. For one thing, I can use audio clips for the podcast. But more importantly, I really admire how he is able to find moments that he appreciates in almost any situation. Cuz that's what it's all about, right? Finding fulfillment in the things that you do and the people around you.
Have A Greattastic Day and Be Safe!
J. Mitchie Ulibarri
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