July 4, early afternoon: last night was the quietest pre-4th I have ever experienced. Virtually no premature fireworks. Not to be compared to any pre-4th I've known in Echo Park, where firecrackers and roman candles as well as the bigger stuff lights for days before the actual holidays and the whole neighborhood raises its voice in the heat. July 3, 2001, for example. We had both fireworks and a gun battle nearby. The cats could tell the difference. When the gunfire started, they RAN for the house, together, instead of merely cowering and slinking into the bushes as they did with fireworks. Lively is good, gunfire bad. But yesterday was quiet, even more so than usual these days, as many people are out of town and so natural ambient noise is a bit lower. It was as if no one in the neighborhood was speaking out loud or playing music. At my house, we're doing our best to rectify the situation by blasting the White Stripes and Willie Nelson and hanging out in the front yard. And tonight, after the fireworks start, dog owners all over the neighborhood will be trotting out their White Zombie CDs. While the dogs are sleeping, let’s hope the Dodgers don’t burn Elysian Park to a crisp. July 3, Warren Olney discussed the matter of fire safety on this historically tinder-dry Independence Day in Los Angeles.