As a child, I didn’t like fireworks. I didn’t like the bangs and had no desire to go anywhere near the source of such a noise.

For perhaps a year or two, at a certain age, I did enjoy a firework display. The sudden noises weren’t exactly ideal but I even went to a November 5th display where there was a roaring bonfire. Standing in front of the flames was quite hypnotising, if a little hot.

Then suddenly, without reason, I got over any issue I had with fireworks. I was alright with the loud bangs, and visiting a display was no problem. But crucially, they had lost their excitement. They suddenly seemed a lot less impressive, and any firework displays we visited, or craned to see out the window, didn’t seem to last very long.

Now, as a podcaster who relishes silence, fireworks are just a pain.