Hot and Humid

On a hot summer day I am reminded of the old song:

Roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer,
Those days of soda and pretzels and .....

I love the slower pace of summer. A hot lazy day with a book is my idea of a good summer experience.

It is true that in the south it can be a bit heavy outside with the heat and humidity, but, we are lucky to live in the era of air conditioning. I run quickly from the cool house to my air conditioned car, step briskly into an air conditioned store then repeat as needed until I am home again enjoying the coolness of forced air and ceiling fans.

A summer afternoon in the south is not the time to explore the great outdoors unless it includes a water feature, like a pool, lake or stream. I will leave the exploration for the spring and fall.

I enjoy looking out at the blooming flowers and leafy trees that shade our property. I have a nice seat by the window in our family room that overlooks our yard. Sometimes the deer walk right up to the house to nibble on my flowers, then I am torn between the beauty of the creature and the desire to save my flowers. During the summer heat I have discovered that flowers in the garden make the whole house and yard seem much cooler.

All winter long I look forward to the days that I can go out and there is no need to wrap up from the cold. There are plenty of months to huddle and shiver. Summer is the time to wear light clothes and leave the sweater behind. It seems liberating to me to be able to just walk out the door.

In the south it is hot and humid. Women glisten from the dampness in the air. Yard work makes for a river running off the end of your nose. It seems odd to me that if it does not rain for a few days we worry about a drought.

Humidity makes the hots hotter and the cold piercing. I think I would rather take the hot since we have air conditioning. Without cool air this heat would be unbearable. I do not know how people lived in this type heat for centuries before air conditioning.

When we first moved here the school my children went to was not air conditioned. They would cut the school day short on the hottest of days and send the children home to go to the pool. Now all of the schools are air conditioned and the children attend year round.

Hot and humid, this is where I live. I am thankful for air conditioning and ceiling fans, especially this year with record breaking days in excess of 100 degrees. Blow baby blow.