Night of the Sirens

As we came home last night from dinner we passed two enormous bonfires in empty fields. The pyro inside of me started awakening, and then I heard the sirens. The closest thing that I can associate with Lag B'Omer is movies where Indians dance around the fire before or after fighting the white people. We walked from the bus stop to our apartment, less than a five minute walk, but still smelled like smoke when we got inside. And heard more sirens. I went on the computer and saw a blurb that a 20 year old was in the hospital in serious condition with burns all over his body from the bonfire. And I heard more sirens. Earlier in the day I watched kids setting up their bonfire. One of them had an old wooden cabinet that he was trying to stand up as a middle beam for his bonfire. He stood it up, and then it came crashing down the other side where another kid was standing. Very luckily, the little kid on the other side dove away in time and didn't get crushed. All this, for a Christian or pagan custom that is based on a typo? How sad. At least I finally got to shave...