Ray is sound asleep on the bed beside me. The dogs are asleep on the floor. William, the cat, is outside and, no doubt, busy hunting. We are in our only air-conditioned room in CA – our bedroom – with the air conditioner on along with the fan. It has been hot here by Southern CA standards: it was 86 today, but with 76% humidity. That doesn’t sound that bad, but add in all the asphalt here and you have a hot and muggy day. Also, subtract air conditioning for the majority of Angelenos and you have a hot sticky populace. Not exactly what we are accustomed to here in this Mediterranean climate.
A friend described the weather today as, “Brutal.”
I’m guessing most of my Texas friends would roll their eyes at that description. “Come to Texas in August,” they might say. “I’ll show you brutal.”
That is the truth – that wavy furnace blast August heat – but the entire state is prepared for that level of heat. They don’t live with their windows open. Here, we primarily live in houses and apartments with windows and doors left open to let in cool breezes. Cheaper than air conditioning, for sure, but not so great when the weather isn’t cooperating.
Luckily, we have this nice cool bedroom, which makes it nice since the rest of our house has retained the heat of the day. We are basking in luxury right now with this coolness. Ah…refrigerated air is nothing less that a technical and social breakthrough. We are all much more civil as a result of its existence, particularly on a hot and humid summer day.
Again, I am not expecting much sympathy from my Southern friends. They would have a hard time thinking 86 degrees is hot even on a late spring day. Alas, factor in that humidity and all this concrete and, I swear, this heat would make even a Texas farmer sweat.
I am going to take a cool bath before heading to bed.
Sleep well, my friends. Hope you are keeping cool wherever you are.
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