Friday, July 21, 2006

Hot Dog Days of Summer

Okay, everyone I know is complaining about the heat. It's hot just about everywhere and it's definately hotter than normal. You can't tell me we aren't having global warming!

That said, I am inviting you to post and let me know what you do to beat the heat. I am NOT a hot weather girl so I am hoping you will share what helps you cope when it gets smokin' hot and I might learn something. If nothing else, perhaps it will distract you for a nano second and you might just feel better about the weather.

Here are my strategies:
-Long cool showers. I find if my thick curley hair is wet, I feel so much better.
-Ice tea, slurpees, mocha frappachinos. (Ahh Starbucks!)
-Freezies. Not only do they taste good, but I love the colours and they remind me of when I was a kid.
-Bare feet.
-FANS running day and night!
-100 % Cotton clothes.
-the BBQ-if I have to cook, then let it be outside and let it be delicious.
-Ice cold fresh fruit.

Okay, your turn, post away!

And might I point out that you will NEVER hear me compain about the cold? I am good to -41C. (Canadians are born with a natural antifreeze in their veins...or maybe it's just us Winnipeggers!) *wink*

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Recently I purchased something at Mark's Work Wearhouse which helps a lot. (I live in Langley, so if you are interested, they should be in your area too.) It's a bandana which you soak in water for 15 minutes, and then it absorbs the water and stays cool for hours. (the top secret ingredient within the bandana may be silica gel, but I don't know) It's okay to store in the fridge as well if you like things really icy. I've found that having this bandana tied around my neck helps cool my whole body! Quite the invention. Hope that helps.

Lilli in Vancouver said...

-I carry a spray mister bottle with me everywhere. Yesterday I drove downtown from UBC and I was spraying myself every 7-8 minutes! This is especially soothing for face, ears...(ok, my whole head!), hands and feet. On a day like yesterday I was also spraying my cotton clothes. Nevertheless, they were dry 10 min later.
-Cucumbers have cooling properties, so I get inventive with making different kinds of cucumber salads
-I avoid sugar, cheese, spicy food, and whatever other heavy foods get my metabolism fired up at full flame
-I use coconut oil as a moisturizer because it cools your skin throughout the day. It's oily going on, but I wipe off the excess after 5 minutes.
-A couple years ago we got this big fan at Costco. It was labelled as a "house fan", I guess because the propellor is so big and can draw air through the whole house. For days when it's unbearable to be in the house instead of in a pool, we do the following:

We close all the windows in the house, except the basement window that the fan is aiming out through, and the upstairs room that we happen to be occupying at the time. It's wonderfully effective. There's a full breeze coming through the window, and it means we can get some sleep at night. Otherwise I'd be tempted to sleep in a tub of cold water!

Kristen Robinson said...

I am with you on the heat and Starbucks thank goodness it is less than a mile down the road. Of course I do the usual a lot of water and the BBQ'ing helps a lot. I obtained a great recipe for a wonderful iced tea that seems to make you feel better (if only in one's state of mind)

Add to 3 cups of hot water 2 Raspberry Zinger tea bags, 2 Lemon Ziner tea bags and steep pour into a container filled with 2 cups of apple juice or cranberry juice and lots of ice viola a nice cool drink that is a bit different from the norm. It makes really good popsicles as well.

My Best-
Kristen

Kris said...

Those flowers look VERY thirsty!
To keep cool I carry a misting bottle with me....just remember to remove your sun glasses before misting your face or you get a serious case of water spots :)
Love your blog!

Miss Robyn said...

I hate the heat! it is winter here at the moment and is chilly but I am so NOT looking forward to summer. Our summers are always unbearable. always, always, always.
stay cool!

Anonymous said...

Cold showers, cold iced tea and my favorite....jumping in my son's little pool with him to play :0)

Anonymous said...

I have never actually done this but my Grandma told me when she was a kid that her mom would wet sheets and they would sleep with them at night in Southern Texas summers!
I just rely on good ol' AC! But my poor flowers!

One Crabapple said...

OMG..I have nothing intelligent to post here....

I am NOT coping.

I keep walking around saying "Man it is so hot" like I was having a big revelation no one else was on to yet.

My partner looked at me Saturday and said " I am right here. I know this. Yes, it is hot."

That was when I realized I had just turned incoherent with the whole thing.

I don't know what to do to make it better. I am taking notes from this blog entry now.

I did just pick up a tip on Love, Joleen's blog tho that you might want to check out.

Amy Huff said...

I live in Texas, so it's kind of nice hearing everyone else comment on how hot it is... clearly some weird form of validation.

We love the movies so we go to late evening movies - nicely air conditioned theaters and it's cooler when we come out, sometimes there's even a breeze. We follow it up with dripping ice cream cones and icy water. Best time to watch the stars and catch the coolest part of the evening.

Amy Huff said...

I live in Texas, so it's kind of nice hearing everyone else comment on how hot it is... clearly some weird form of validation.

We love the movies so we go to late evening movies - nicely air conditioned theaters and it's cooler when we come out, sometimes there's even a breeze. We follow it up with dripping ice cream cones and icy water. Best time to watch the stars and catch the coolest part of the evening.