The Fourth of July is around the corner, and it is one of my favorite holidays. Taking place during a warm month is great, but celebrating the United States of America is the best. This patriotic holiday is great to celebrate our wonderful country, but certain parts of this holiday are better than others. It is now time to play a game of overrated, properly rated, and underrated.

The colors red, white, and blue are properly rated. These colors look great on flags flying high on the Fourth or on pleated flags hanging from porches, decks, and fences across this great country. Everyone is wearing these beautiful colors with shirts, shorts, and everything in between to celebrate this country. These beautiful colors are the best colors for the United States of America.

Sanctioned fireworks are underrated. Until the day I die, I will always enjoy a beautiful firework show put on by a city or organization celebrating the United States of America. Sitting back and watching explosions in the sky is a beautiful sight. My favorite part of the show is the ending. Fifteen to 20 minutes of explosions is fun but cramming all those explosions into the last minutes of the finale is even better. My second favorite part is being around other people who are also taking in this beautiful show and feeling a bond with other citizens over celebrating the United States.

Unsanctioned fireworks are overrated. Whether it is not sharing fireworks with others or shooting them off weeks ahead of the Fourth when no one asked for them is no fun. If no one is around, go for it. Besides that, it is tough to hear fireworks for the days and weeks leading up to the Fourth every night. The day after the Fourth is tough when I have driven around, and it feels like driving through a battlefield from all the smoke of the unsanctioned fireworks. Leave it to the professionals because amateurs will never be as good or as safe as the big guns.

Hot dogs are properly rated. These delicious delights are always an excellent choice to grill on the celebration of the United States. They are extremely easy to make. Whether family and friends are over, or you are just feeding yourself, hot dogs will soothe the soul. On a day where the United States is celebrated in excess from the colors to the fireworks, nothing pairs better than eating a food where no one is sure where the meat comes from.

My ratings may differ from others, and that is okay. Every American is entitled to their own opinion because the most important part of this holiday is to enjoy it. Find what you love about this holiday and celebrate the United States the way you know how. If it happens to be unsanctioned fireworks, then please fire them off far away from me.

Sean Dengler is a writer, comedian, farmer, and host of the Pandaring Talk podcast who grew up on a farm between Traer and Dysart. You can reach him at sean.h.dengler@gmail.com.