July 4, 2022, the nation’s 246th anniversary of severing ties with Great Britain over economic hardships (taxes), may itself be beset by economic hardships.

Owing to numerous factors, the cost of a July 4, 2022, Bucks County bash may turn revelers red-faced with anger, send them white with shock, or even have them cursing a blue streak.

Hosting a traditional cookout? That’s going to cost nearly 20 percent more than it did last year, according to an American Farm Bureau Federation survey, as cited by KYW Newsradio.

The causes are the usual suspects: inflation and supply chain issues. Itemizing the year-over-year changes in traditional menu items reveals the depth of the bad news:

• Ground beef, up 36 percent
• Pork and beans, up 33 percent
• Potato salad, up 19 percent
• Half gallon of ice cream, up 10 percent

And after the family has sated itself and dusk has fallen, economic woe will still make itself obvious. Firework prices have also gone skyward, dampening backyard cherry-bombers and community shows alike.

For 2022 home pyrotechnics, according to Axios, firework pricing faces a triple threat of:

• Demand, which, like last July 4, is high as many public shows have again been cancelled
• Shipping, now at a record $45,000 per container
• Budgetary constraints, as household finances — stretched thin for groceries other essentials — have less room for seasonal extras like sparklers and bottle rockets

Public displays are also apt to be shorter and perhaps dimmer than in prior years, owing to the same factors.

And if patriots think they can merely commute to celebrate with relatives, that’s going to be a musket-shot to the wallet, too. The national average for a gallon of gas is now at an all-time high of $4.88, reports AAA.

Still, apparently not even fuel prices can overshadow wanderlust. AAA further predicts national July 4 travel to increase nearly four percent from 2021. That bump, albeit small, comprises 47.9 million people going 50+ miles, despite the outlay to fill the tank.

So perhaps Aunt Mary Lou’s strawberry-blueberry shortcake is worth traveling for. It is, after all, both delicious and red-white-and-blue themed.