For the first time in generations, there has not been a time when so many Americans have lawful access to consumer fireworks and sparklers and the ability to legally drive on highways a 70 mph or faster. More states are legalizing cannabis products and the Supreme Court seems to finally protect and enforce the second.

Good morning, America 🇺🇸 ! 247 years going strong, only three more before a quarter millennium has come and gone. Have fun with your fireworks and remember as the sign says, you are responsible for your own safety, not some government worker.

Cloudy and 68 degrees for the morning walk. ☁ Calm wind. The dew point is 67 degrees. The muggers and the sultry weather will be sticking around for a while. The skies will clear around 1 pm. Air quality is moderate around 55.

Already a rather muggy day and it will be hot by evening 😰 but it should be be a nice one for fireworks 🎇 and barbecues. 🍔 I’m out for my morning walk 🚶 a little later than normal but earlier than over the long weekend. I had my hard boiled egg 🥚 and black coffee ☕, I am thinking about having a those 🍌 banana oatmeal pancakes 🥞 I make in the food processor topped with strawberries. 🍓

Independence Day will have a slight chance of showers, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1pm. Otherwise, partly sunny 🌦, with a high of 84 degrees at 5pm. One degree above normal. Maximum dew point of 71 at 11am. Calm wind becoming north around 6 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. A year ago, we had mostly sunny skies. The high last year was 84 degrees. The record high of 104 was set in 1911.

Yesterday after spending too much time working on my old jalopy of a bicycle 🛠 🚲 I ended up going for a delightful walk 🚶 out to Bender Mellon Preserve. 🐦 🦋 Lots of birds and butterflies and flowers 🌼, I made sure to stay out of the poison ivy. Kind of a hot and humid day but the rail trail is quite shaded and I was back home before the thunderstorms ⛈ came rolling through. 8.8 miles walked 🚶 for the day.

Solar noon 🌞 is at 1:00 pm with sun having an altitude of 70.3° from the due south horizon (-0.5° vs. 6/21). A six foot person will cast a 2.2 foot shadow today compared to 2.2 feet on the first day of summer. The golden hour 🏅 starts at 7:55 pm with the sun in the west-northwest (296°). 📸 The sunset is in the west-northwest (303°) with the sun dropping below the horizon at 8:37 pm after setting for 3 minutes and 26 seconds with dusk around 9:11 pm, which is 14 seconds earlier than yesterday. 🌇 The best time to look at the stars is after 9:57 pm. At sunset, look for rain 🌧 and thunderstorms 🌩 and temperatures around 79 degrees. The dew point will be 71 degrees. There will be a calm wind. Today will have 15 hours and 16 minutes of daytime, a decrease of 50 seconds over yesterday.

Tonight will have a chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 7pm. Partly cloudy 🌧, with a low of 65 degrees at 6am. Three degrees above normal. Maximum dew point of 71 at 8pm. Calm wind. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. In 2022, we had mostly clear skies in the evening, which became rain by the early hours of the morning. It got down to 65 degrees. The record low of 44 occurred back in 1982.

On this day in 1776, The United States Declaration of Independence is adopted by the Second Continental Congress. 51 years later, slavery would be banned in New York State in 1821. Starting the day after Independence Day 1967, you would be able to FOIL the Federal Government, after U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Freedom of Information Act into law on July 4, 1966. Then citizens could request information on how much the federal government spent on fireworks the night before.

Right now, a split verdict on the weekend. 😕 Saturday, a chance of showers between 8am and 2pm, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 84. Chance of precipitation is 50%. Maximum dew point of 67 at 10am. Sunday, a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 84. Chance of precipitation is 40%. Maximum dew point of 67 at 11am. Typical average high for the weekend is 84 degrees.

Wouldn’t be a bad weekend as it stands for heading out of town 🌲 but I have a feeling I won’t be as I’m kind of busy and really want to take delivery of a bicycle 🚲 next weekend. Saves money 💵 to stay home plus the following week is my dentist appointment 🦷 so it would make sense to head out after that.

Looking ahead, next Tuesday is World Population Day 👩‍👩‍👧‍👧 when the sun will be setting at 8:35 pm with dusk at 9:07 pm. The thunderstorms at least will be booming. On that day in 2022, we had hot weather, partly sunny and temperatures between 91 and 55 degrees. Typically, the high temperature is 84 degrees. We hit a record high of 98 back in 1936.