Day 152
I was doing whatever I was doing, today, obviously my mind was NOT on whatever was at hand because out of the blue (in my head, not out loud) I heard Tom Hank’s voice reciting the many ways to serve shrimp … Bubba Gump style! Now, seriously, I am beginning to question my sanity as to WHY this, in particular, would pop into my head, at random, when I’m supposed to be working. I know it’s been hot. I know I’ve been overheated. I know we broke a record today (103). And I know I’m quasi-fried.
But perhaps I’m also … steamed, sautéed, braised, poached, boiled, grilled, and baked!
Yes, it’s been hot. But it’s been hot ALL OVER. The last I heard (2 days ago) the U.S. had over 2400 records broken for new high temps. 2400! That is craziness!
And I think it sounds worse because the reporting is constantly in our faces and on the radio. I wonder if I would feel cooler if the temperature wasn’t flashed across the bottom of my tv screen ever 12 minutes … or readily available as a bookmarked favorite on my computer?
How did the pioneers handle this? Surely this is not the first time that it’s been this hot (maybe not in the last 100 years, but at some OTHER time before records were kept).
Can you imagine … no refrigeration? no ice cubes? no air conditioning or fans? no showers? no pools? no sprinklers? no water bottles? no Slurpees?
And ALL THOSE CLOTHES! Oh my! The mere thought of being Laura Ingalls makes me break into a sweat. I would have been one of those mounds along the wagon trail … with a rock or RIP written in the dirt atop it as surely I would have succumbed to heat stroke in all that prairie garb!
I remember summers as a kid in Chicago … nights could be terribly unpleasant. And throw a hot dachshund onto your humidity-sogged sheets and it was TERRIBLY unpleasant! Gives new meaning to HOT DOG!
I got an article from a friend tonight about cooling off your dogs (and I don’t mean your FEET, however, this would do the trick, too!). Since dogs don’t sweat they release their body heat through panting. If your dog is a snub-nosed critter (like a Pug) then they have to work extra hard to release the heat from their bodies due to their anatomical design. Dogs cool off through their feet … so, if you want to help your pooch cool down, dip his feet in a bowl or glass of cool (not cold) water, supply lots and lots of fresh water and hose down or let him wade in a kiddie pool (supervision needed for all animals). You can even wet down a light towel and put it over her body … Gertie likes this the best. But keep wetting it down as it’ll warm up on a hot little body.
In any case, another day of 103 degrees is forecast for tomorrow and regardless of how well we try to keep cool it looks like we’ll all be cooked, fried, boiled, broiled and baked!
Darn … now I want some shrimp!