Much like the Southeast Texas weather, fireworks were hot commodities this weekend preceding the Fourth of July.

“I think it’s the novelty of it,” said Joe Daughtry, owner of Jake’s Fireworks in Nederland. “It’s something you don’t get to do all the time—you get to put on your own show.”

Daughtry referred to the unique thrill that fills a customer’s heart whenever they purchase fireworks—that same ebullient spirit that renders itself plain on people’s faces when they buy them. “It’s very rare for people who buy fireworks who aren’t happy when they do,” said the Nederland fireworks vendor.

“Girls will say it’s the colors; boys will say it’s the explosion,” Caley Hamilton, local seller at Ware’s Fireworks on Spurlock Road, said, in trying to pin down the mass appeal of sparkly lights that erupt in the middle of the night.

That appeal translated into excitement for Daughtry, who went on to expound upon the particular kind of enthusiasm that comes from kids. “It’s like a candy store to them. They’re excited beyond expectation.”

However, sometimes there’s more to that appeal than just sheer exuberance. In Camille Daniels’ opinion, who operates her family’s store, Cook’s Fireworks, out of Nederland, that appeal could also come down to the individual selling the fireworks as well. “We keep people who know the product,” she said. “We go to fireworks demos.”

It would be that knowledge base that an informed vendor like Daniels cultivates from shows, reading material, and practical experience that would allow her to educate the local populace about the types, brands, and effects of the fireworks that they’re buying—and thus, influence the level of excitement about a particular firework.

“A seller can put a spin on it,” Daniels revealed, expanding upon the notion that both childlike enthusiasm and a well-informed disposition can color a buyer’s fireworks decision. But sometimes, it would still just be that intangible benefit that the pyrotechnic devices produce that makes them so appealing.

“Fireworks tend to bring people together,” Daughtry said. “It’s that excitement from pulling families together that causes them to be together.”

As for popular types of fireworks, the kinds can be as varied as the reasons for buying them. Multi-shot cakes, artillery shells, Saturn Missiles, Texas Outlaw, and perennial favorite Roman candles all seem to be big sellers, according to the various fireworks vendors in the area.

Just remember whenever dealing with something that goes boom by nature: safety first.

“Always have water around,” Daniels said. “And hose everything down when you’re done.”

And, as any of the helpful vendors would tell you: “Read the warning labels.”