[macgolfnut]

I'm sorry for those of you that don't think this is a friendly place. I have been here for 3 years and I find that 95% of the people that I meet are very friendly. There are always some bad apples in the bunch and some of the most angry people seem to use TOTV to vent their anger. My feeling is that the powers that be are trying to offer a lot of opportunities for people to enjoy the holidays and other special events. As The Villages have grown, and especially this time of year, there are going to be times when some of these events are very crowded. I would agree that it is bad to save seats in the squares around the bandstand. When it comes to the parade, I'm not sure there is a better way to accommodate the people who want to enjoy the parade with their friends. I was part of a group that got to LSL at 5:45 to reserve a table and had someone at the table throughout the day. We saw tables where people got there early to reserve the table and then left and didn't return until right before the parade. This is definitely wrong and the event officials should open up those tables that are not attended. Perhaps a solution would be to do away with the tables and just leave those spaces open to everyone. However, you are never going to stop people from saving spaces. Go to your hometown 4th of July parade, or, if you've ever gone on a cruise, a seat by the pool.

Come on. Lighten up, people. If you don't want to fight crowds, don't go to the parade or the squares this time of year. I thoroughly enjoyed the parade and the day with some good friends.