Man, work and grad school are kicking my ass. I'm struggling just to keep my
head above water with those two, much less do my studying on the side.
Periodic immersion at work in Portuguese is getting me a crash course in
reading comprehension there, which makes me feel good. On the other hand, I
spend a lot of time working through languages at work, which tires me out for
my personal studying too.

This weekend is a holiday weekend for America - Independence Day! As usual,
we'll celebrate separating from the British by exploding lots of fireworks,
grilling up as much as possible and generally having fun outside.

Let's do some words!

  * **brīvība** : freedom [slider title="decline me"] _brīvība_ , f, 4. dekl.  
_vsk_.: brīvība, brīvības, brīvībai, brīvību, ar brīvību, brīvībā  
_dsk_.: brīvības, brīvību, brīvībām, brīvības, ar brīvībām, brīvībās [/slider]

I can't think of this word without also remembering Braveheart with Mel Gibson
in war paint. If you're in Rīga, seeing the Freedom Monument (Brīvības
piemineklis) is a must-do.

  * **uguņošana** : fireworks [slider title="decline me"] _uguņošana_ , f, 4. dekl.  
_vsk_.: uguņošana, uguņošanas, uguņošanai, uguņošanu, ar uguņošanu, uguņošanā  
_dsk_.: uguņošanas, uguņošanu, uguņošanām, uguņošanas, ar uguņošanām,
uguņošanās [/slider]

This is a noun'd verb and the root is _uguns_.

  * **karogs** : flag [slider title="decline me"] _karogs_ , m, 1. dekl.  
_vsk_.: karogs, karoga, karogam, karogu, ar karogu, karogā  
_dsk_.: karogi, karogu, karogiem, karogus, ar karogiem, karogos [/slider]

Fun fact: The Latvian flag is one of the oldest flag designs in the world and
dates back to the 13th century. It also has an unusual form factor of 2:1 that
makes it distinctively rectangular, an aspect it shares with the British flag.
(The American flag apparently has a ratio of 10:19! The "normal" flag ratio
seems to be 2:3.)

  * **neatkarība** : independence [slider title="decline me"] _neatkarība_ , f, 4. dekl.  
_vsk_.: neatkarība, neatkarības, neatkarībai, neatkarību, ar neatkarību,
neatkarībā  
_dsk_.: neatkarības, neatkarību, neatkarībām, neatkarības, ar netkarībām,
neatkarībās [/slider]

Yes, this is a negated noun! It negates _atkarība_ : _dependence_. It is also
related to the reflexive verb _karāties_ - _to hang_.

  * **svinēt** : to celebrate [slider title="conjugate me"] _svinēt_ , 3. konj. (mixed)  
_tag._ svinu, svini, svin, svinam, svinat  
_pag._ svinēju, svinēji, svinēja, svinējām, svinējāt  
_nak._ svinēšu, svinēsi, svinēs, svinēsim, svinēsiet / svinēsit  
_pav._ svini, sviniet [/slider]

Of course, what's a holiday without a little celebrating? Since I didn't get
to include this at Jāņi, I thought I'd include it here.