Despite temperatures being consistently warm and you now have that impending sense of dread when you have to put in a full day of work instead of laying out bronzing in the sun, it’s not actually summer yet. Gasp. For those of you who slept through elementary school life science, we’re more than happy to provide for you the summer solstice date which which is also when the first day of summer is. And guess what, it’s tomorrow, June 21.

Here’s a quick science lesson to break down the summer solstice for you. which happens to be the longest period of sunlight during the entire year. The Earth is constantly tilted at a 23°. During the Earth’s orbit when that tilt is inclined towards the sun, we experience the beautiful and serene season we so pleasantly recognize as summer. Conversely when that tilt leans towards the other way, we shiver through winter which isn’t so bad because we get to partake in holidays like Christmas, New Years, and most importantly my birthday.

Because of the abundance of daylight and sheer happiness during that time, worldwide interpretation dictates that most cultures recognize the event in some form with a holiday, festival, and/or  ritual usually evolving around  themes of religion or fertility.

You might not even know it, but the United State enjoys many of these celebrations too, and no, I’m not referring to backyard 4th of July barbecues flush with grilled meets, frosty brews, and eye-popping fireworks.

The NYC Swedish Midsummer celebrations in New York City’s Battery Park attracts approximately 3,000-5,000 people annually, making it one of the largest of such jollifications outside of Sweden’s capital Stockholm.

So tomorrow, when Friday night rolls around and there’s still plenty of daylight beaming to pique your interest in say, bars with outdoor televisions or bars with outdoor activities or just a nice public grassy spot to catch some live tunes, just remember what you’re celebrating: