Fireworks: fun, but illegal in Houston

So your mail won't get delivered and your trash won't get picked up today, but you'll still have Houstonist — sorta. We're making it a light day so we can get after those great American pursuits: barbecueing, watching baseball and listening to that damn Neil Diamond song. (We mean this damn Neil Diamond song, of course, not this one or this one.) But to our point: After you've bought fireworks for your own private pyrotechnics show, remember not to accidentally wander into the city of Houston, or you could get slapped with a $2,000 fine. Tough, we know, but at least you won't get arrested for having an overdue library book.

On Sunday, the Chronicle reported on an HFD arson investigator keeping an eye on a fireworks stand in Kingwood, just outside the Houston city limit. He watched people buy fireworks, then take them inside the city, where he'd confiscate the rockets and write tickets. As you might expect, it surprised some people — all of them claimed they weren't going to shoot the fireworks off in Houston, of course — but the rule is spelled out on the HFD website. You can possess and use fireworks in unincorporated areas of Harris County, with some exceptions (for example, you can't set fireworks off inside a car or hospital). The Houston fireworks ban extends to some areas of the county that are outside the city limits, too — here's a map.

Basically, the safest way to go is to check out one of the local fireworks displays (there are also some outside the city limits). Chances are that you won't get fined, and you also probably won't accidentally singe your eyebrows off with an errant roman candle. Happy 4th!