First, it’s with a heavy, magnesium-laden heart I bring some possibly serious news: this might be my final fireworks packaging post!?

Why? Why would this happen? I retire not due to a long-expected running-out of material — every year I think there won’t be anything worth photographing and every year I’m proven wrong — but rather, because of johnny law.

“It’s the Last Year for Personal Fireworks in Vancouver” explains:

This is the last year residents in Vancouver will be allowed to buy and use fireworks – and the last year for less than law abiding Oregonians who cross the Columbia River to purchase fireworks you can’t buy in Portland. Last year, the Vancouver City Council passed an ordinance banning the personal use of any fireworks, including sparklers. They also banned the sale of fireworks in city limits.

Including sparklers!!!

Of course, Portland should still continue to sell the more common, less-lethal fireworks you can get in the grocery store — you know, the fancy fountains, the pop-its, the whistling pete’s.

(A little tip about whistling pete’s: flip ’em upside down and stick ’em in the holes in sewer grates for a good smoke/light show and cool effect-filtered freaky whistle.)

But when it comes to insane, amazing fireworks packaging, nothing beats the big.

It’s not my place to pass judgement on the shriveled up, Raisinet-like hearts of the Vancouver City Council — I know they have their reasons, such as maybe owning dogs, having explosion-sensitive hearing aids, or something about a high chance of fire danger and personal injury to children something something — but I just wanted to let you know…

This could be it. So let’s go.

Here are some photos of firework packaging in 2016.

(If you’d like to enjoy the previous nine (!) years in this rich and ridiculous tradition, here you go: 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and then 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015.)