When our hometown Syracuse Chiefs set off their post game fireworks, the pretty pyro takes place from behind the center-field fence.

Which I always thought was good and proper as my dear wife Karen and wonderful daughter Elisabeth and fantastic significant George Three have enjoyed many Triple-A fireworks displays and left NBT Bank Stadium very happy, indeed.

And then we discovered that the New York Mets game with the Washington Nationals – lo, the parent club of our Chiefs, even – on the Saturday before Labor Day also was designated as Fireworks Night at CitiField.

Yes, we stayed with the Long Island half of our family reunion, my little sister Dory and her husband Jim and my niece Erin and nephew James.

We were all psyched after the Mets won 3-1.

Firing pads.

A crew quickly rolled metal dollies filled with firing stations onto the outfield grass.

Say what?!

The fireworks inside the stadium were beautiful. And then they started shooting them off up top, too, on the rim of the stadium.

Purple haze.

Playing above the rim.

Red, white and blue.

Soon enough, I was shouting to my family: I don’t feel like I’m at the fireworks, I feel like I’m in the fireworks.

Immersed in the power and light.

Click on a gallery photo for an enlarged slide show.

The fireworks up top were timed to the beat of the music. Somehow they reminded me of synchronized swimming in the Olympics.

When the smoke cleared – well, the smoke was still hanging over the field when the fireworks ended and we made our way out with 40,000 other fans. We were stuck in a traffic jam trying to exit the parking lot for an hour. I still loved the fireworks.

Where were the best fireworks you’ve ever seen, and why? Which of these is your favorite firework shot? How long was your longest parking lot traffic jam tie-up, and where was it?