America is being subjected to another heat wave, especially the folks up North. Actually, here in central Florida it was a beautiful, cool morning of 71F and promises to be a great day with virtually no chance of rain. It's a great day to get outside!
Anyway, those of you with the oppressive heat and humidity will probably want to get out early, and then find somewhere cool inside during the afternoon – unless of course you don't have air conditioning. Then you'll want to head out to some cool places besides your un-air conditioned house.
- The Library is a great choice for a cool indoor location that won't tempt you to spend money. You can surf the internet and read anything you want. Or you could bring your knitting and sit in a corner listening to your ipod, or favorite afternoon drive time radio show.
- A Museum or historical site is another great choice to spend some time indoors in a cool location. This option may have an admission fee, but you might actually broaden your mind here.
- The Grocery Store is always cold, especially in the frozen foods and dairy aisle. Just make sure you stick to your list. Plan your shop for the middle of the day when it's the hottest, but be sure you don't get stuck in traffic on the way home or all the ice cream and Popsicles will melt.
- The community pool or a lake – just make sure there are no gators in that lake. We saw a big one at the State Park river this weekend. If you don't have a pool or a lake, pull out the old sprinkler and a large piece of plastic and just roll around on the ground in the water, It will cool you down just fine.
- A Shady park – bring a chair and sit in the shade. If there is a breeze this will be like natures air conditioning.
- A Church – a good old fashioned big church built with lots of block will be a nice cool place to hang out, say a prayer that the heat will end soon, and hope that winter will not be that bad – you're not complaining about the heat.
Remember to drink lots of water. No, more than that even. And don't run your heat generating appliances like dishwashers, dryers and ovens in the daytime. You're A/C can only cool your house about 20F cooler than the outside temp, so if its 100F and your thermostat is set for 65F you're in for a surprise. Wear loose fitting, light fabrics and skip the socks – wear sandals to let your body acclimate and tolerate the heat better.