Talk About Tuesday

 

It's too hot

I'm not a summer person. I don't like heat, I don't like humidity, and I don't like the sun.

Unfortunately, like a lot of folks right now, I'm experiencing Summer with a capital S. It's not anywhere close to as hot as it is in the PNW right now, we're only at about 90℉ (32.2℃). With humidity it feels around 97℉ (36.1℃), and it's slowly rolling between partly cloudy and sunnier than an optimist's disposition and twice as obnoxious to my pessimistic tush.

I've drank 2 liters of water today, had a bowl of cereal, ate a handful of cold, wet baby carrots (they were from a leftover veggie tray and still pretty good), and of course had my morning coffee (which was probably a mistake since hot beverages are a bad idea lol). I also took a cool shower (cold showers can cause shock! Just pick a temperature that's juuuust warm enough to be comfortable and don't go any higher!) and dressed in all breathable clothing. Natural fibers like cotton and linen are your friends!

You may have guessed already, but blogs will be slow to appear in hot weather. My laptop heats up quickly and uncomfortably in this heat, and my phone just hates the blog format. My bedroom has no AC, so I'm just cycling the warm updrafts from downstairs and across the hall as opposed to actually cooling down. It's 76℉ (24.4℃) downstairs, but up here has to be at least 82℉ (27.8℃). Thankfully, due to the downstairs AC, the air up here is nowhere near as humid as it could be, so I'm fairly comfortable so long as I take breaks from the laptop and spread out my limbs every so often lol!

But yes, tis very toasty this week. Looking forward to whenever it breaks and hoping it's not a traumatic event like a wind storm or something. It'll totally be a massive weather event, though. It always is.

Three days of light to moderate rain with thunder wouldn't be so bad, though. It'd give me a major chance to focus on my writing, which always goes better with consistent precipitation, weirdly enough.

This week will probably consist of a lot of research into how different people handle different elements in watercolor. I'll watch people make neon signs seem to glow, how they make shadows deeper or lighter, how they approach foggy landscapes or rain, etc.

It's been years since I took a class, and those classes mostly consisted of color theory and avoiding unintentional focal points.

No schedule this week because I have no idea what I'll be up for or when - there's a lot going on.

I will try to keep working on things, though, and I hope you do, too (within reason - don't exhaust yourselves!)

Keep an eye out for the following symptoms as you endure the heat:

• dizziness
• sudden chills
• you were sweating hard but now you suddenly aren't
• muscle cramps/weakness
• lethargy
• diarrhea
• nausea
• sudden/severe headache

If you feel any of that - if you feel off at all - get to shade, get something cool to drink and sip it slowly, place cool cloths or bottles against your lower back, the bottoms of your feet (if you're not diabetic and don't have Reynauds - don't do things that will physically hurt you!), under your arms, etc. You are overheating and if you can't get these symptoms under control in say 30 minutes you should probably go to Urgent Care or (if your symptoms are bad) get to the ER. Heat exhaustion is no joke and since you're probably not a ham, you should not bake yourself.

If you don't have AC/access to AC, make sure you have airflow through your whole living space - one open window on either end helps especially when you run a lot of fans. Block as much sunlight as possible with shades/curtains/tacked up towels or pillowcases/etc. Find cool tile, vinyl, or wood floors to put your bare feet on. Take a cool bath once a day and dip your feet in cool water. Anywhere you can feel a pulse, you can press a cool cloth for some relief.

Please, please, please take care of yourselves, and don't let your pets or kids outside without you - they can burn themselves on sidewalks, cement, fences, etc and none of them can really recognize the signs/symptoms of heat exhaustion or heat stroke.

If you develop little clear bumps on your skin, that's heat rash. Yes, it's usually red bumps, but it's still heat rash. Go cool down.

If you don't think you're thirsty, take a sip of water anyway.

Take care of yourselves out there,

And Stay Inside and Enjoy Something!