The U.S.’s birthday has come and gone, and while most of us celebrated in the usual way—a day off from work, a cookout, and some fireworks—how many of us took the time to reflect on our nation’s place in the world? At 233 years, the U.S. is an awfully young country; on the other hand, with a population of 300 million, a gross domestic output of $14 trillion, a considerable history in charitable donations and other assistance to less-well-off nations, and substantial military capability, it has created a unique place for itself in the world.

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It's July, and here in the U.S., we're planning our Independence Day, celebrations. July 4 is an important day in our nation's history. On this day in 1776, the Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence and set the 13 colonies on the road to freedom as a sovereign nation.

On the 4th, flags and fireworks will be flying, proud U.S. citizens will line the roads to watch patriotic parades, and backyard grills will be fired up as families gather to celebrate our country's official birthday. And one proud citizen and fabricator, Bob Williams, will take the day off from working on a unique project that commemorates a great chapter in U.S. history—one that began almost 170 years before the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

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After a holiday weekend, slightly interrupted by a very quiet day of work on July 3, I’m a little bit out of the loop. I’m not quite in the swing of things, so I’ll just tackle a topic still on my mind—barbecue.

I had more than 30 minutes to grill up some meat on July Fourth, so I broke out my charcoal and took the cover off my kettle grill. That charcoal grill by Weber-Stephen Products Co., Palatine, Ill., might be one of the most useful metal fabrications every produced in this country. I put mine to good use on Tuesday.

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