I work in South Central Los Angeles, California.  The area is well known throughout the world for its spicy history.  Most of the notoriety the area possesses is due to gang activity and crime, unfortunately.  I personally don’t find it to be all that bad but I do go in to work very early and am usually out of there before the sun sets so maybe I miss the spicy stuff.   Today, someone decided to celebrate the Chinese New Year with firecrackers.  Outside my office window that is along the street a couple guys were attempting to stave off evil spirits for the new year.  I could hear someone talking outside my window and at one point I even looked out through the security bars.  When the firecrackers were lit, and then exploded, my Army training kicked in and I hit the deck.  I literally dropped on the floor.  The others in the office were sitting, stunned and frozen with fear.  When we realized that they were firecrackers and not a gun we all breathed a sigh of relief.  The chances of the noise coming from a gun in that area are pretty good, firecrackers, much less.  I wasn’t even embarrassed.  It did get me thinking about the world we live in today.  It is a shame that a couple guys celebrating their cultures holiday could be mistaken for something terrible right outside my window.  So Happy Chinese New Year everyone, may all the loud bangs you hear in your future be from firecrackers too.