I’ve lost track of how long we’ve been baking here. Three weeks? Four weeks? I don’t know anymore. Vultures are circling. Doing my part for the environment and needless to say my electric bill, I have refused to turn on the air conditioning. Don’t think I’m a cheapskate, LOL. We had it on all afternoon and evening recently for a party. It just seems stupid to cool a whole house, hand over good money to the electric company and contaminate the ozone layer while I’m all alone in the house.
Having spent this much close and personal time with the heat, I have come to a conclusion. Heat sucks! And we haven’t even gone over 110 degrees. I feel bad for other areas where they say the heat is worse.
Let me share with you some of the heat-beating ideas I have been experimenting with:
• Hot lunch. Okay, I know some cultures do this to deal with the temperature. Hot food during summer, chilled food during winter. It made sense to me. If the food that goes in is hotter than the ambient temperature, it would logically stand to reason that then it would feel cooler. No. It just makes it hotter.
• Chiles. These go hand-in-hand with hot food. See above. I have had no luck with this tactic.
• NoDoz. Having taken a NoDoz a couple of mornings in a row and being able to continue to work through the heat, I surmised it must be the medicinal qualities in NoDoz that made me heat tolerant -- Yeah, I know. Stupid.
• Wet t-shirts. This is something I learned from my mother who wet her scarves before donning a hat and working in the garden. This works probably the best for the short period of time it remains wet… But everything has to be covered with towels.
• Close windows. The light breezes that tickle the drapes are hot, not a drop of refreshment to be found. This seems to help during the hottest part of the day, closing the windows that bring the heat wafting in.
My latest greatest idea: Iceless water. Okay, just bear with me. Here’s my reasoning. I have been drinking so much ice-laden water to beat the heat, and still feel like the heat is seeking me out and laying a heavy blanket on me. Using ice cools my innards too much, so it makes the heat that much more pronounced. This might seem like it’s in the same vein as eating hot food only the opposite, right? But do you see my rationale? For this reason, I have come to the conclusion that the ice is counterproductive. I’ve got my fingers crossed.
Any home-grown suggestions?
P.S. You don’t have to tell me…I know I will regret complaining this coming winter.
I think you are right on the money when you say the greatest idea is hydrating! Drink before you become thirsty and drink often. When you become thirsty you will be about a "quart and a half low". You can also mist yourself using a spray bottle of water during the hottest part of the day.
ReplyDeleteInstead of a wet t-shirt, wet a hand towel or dish cloth and drape it around your neck (that way you don't have to cover the furniture with towels). ^-^
Last but definitely not least, cool yourself with a fan, especially during the hottest part of the day.