The nation's birthday bash is just around the corner, and millions of Americans can't wait to fire up the grill and cook up some mouth-watering delights.

Some backyard chefs will settle for burgers and dogs. But some grillmasters will go all out, cooking the kinds of feasts that would make a sheik shudder with delight.

Barbecue is big time these days. Some people have whole outdoor "kitchens" complete with grills that cost more than small cars, lavish entertainment centers and more home furnishings than you could pack into a '60s-model singlewide.

Barbecue is so big several magazines and TV shows are dedicated to the endeavor.

Naturally, since so many people enjoy grilling, there are others who are totally against outdoor cooking and want to do everything they can to stop it.

Environmental zealots top the anti-grilling list. They say outdoor cooking poisons and pollutes the atmosphere and hastens the planet's demise.

So does a forest fire. Planet Earth gets over it. So should those who still haven't noticed that the Earth's latest warm-up ended 10 years ago, and the planet has been cooling since.

But now there may be a way to grill your favorite meat and not singe a single tree or light a lone chunk of charcoal.

An accidental demonstration of this Earth-friendly cooking technique was held recently in metro New Jersey.

The chef didn't actually mean to cook an Earth-friendly meal. He was a businessman trying to rid an office complex he owned of some pesky squirrels that were roaming across the rooftops and causing devastating damage.

The businessman finally said, "Enough," and called a pest control company to end the squirrel plague.

Said company placed traps on building rooftops, and faster than you can say "nuts," one squirrel was caught.

Unfortunately, the trapped squirrel was not discovered until the next day. By then the summer sun had cooked it well done.

Sad story. I don't like to see any creature suffer that way. But the unintended squirrel-cooking does have one positive effect. It reminds us that since our rooftops are soaking up all that sunshine, we can use them to cook our Fourth of July feasts.

Why not? Instead of sending barbecue smoke soaring into the atmosphere, just take your favorite cut of meat, wrap it in some tin foil and lay it on the sunniest part of your roof.

In a few hours, you'll have some barbecued delights a king would kill for. That is, if the squirrels don't get it first.

(WARNING. Rooftop grilling does carry risks, like falling off and killing yourself, so check with your insurance company to see if your policy covers rooftop cookout accidents).

This has to be the greenest cooking idea ever. With a little planning and a lot of caution, rooftop grilling may be just the way to save the world and put some solar sizzle into your summer cooking schedule.

I once cooked an entire meal on a hot car engine, and it was tasty as can be. Rooftop grilling doesn't even burn gasoline. Take that, BP.

I can't wait for this new chance to save the planet. I just hope a squirrel doesn't show up while I'm grilling. Unless, of course, he wants to share some ribs.

(Send your e-mail comments to: alex@newnan.com)