I live in Hell! A friend of mine used to say it's hotter than that here, so maybe it's true then? When friends from out of state fly in, they usually call me from the airport and say "I have arrived in Hell!" They never do sound happy about it. :/
The projected high is 118 today. Good thing I have an indoor job now. For most people in the horse industry though, you are up and outside, feeding, getting horses worked and done by 10 or 11 am at the latest. Four thirty and five am are not odd hours and the sun is already coming up, so you better get out and get after it. The fact that some of the fast food places don't serve 'lunch' or maybe even open until 10 or 10:30, is annoying. If I want a burger or a deli sandwhich at 8:30 or 9am, it's because it's lunch time already!
By 9 am it was already 97 degrees outside and it's supposed to be partly cloudy today. My 'office window' does not show any clouds in the sky. Not one. At least my window is in the shade. Hooray for that!
Yes, it is a dry heat. Imagine sticking your head in the oven. You get the idea... As Matthew Broderick's character in the movie "Biloxie Blues" said- "It's Africa Hot."
I have been to Alaska twice now and would loooove to go back. I have several friends up there in different parts of the state. Mostly in the Wasilla, Palmer, and Anchorage area, but a couple out on the Aleutian Islands. Their high is in the 60's this time of year (62 today and cloudy, 50's-60's and rainy the next 3 days) and they swear they are just 'dying' in the heat. Both times I went, when coming home and the plane reached the gate, attached the ramp in the chute and they opened the door- the heat made me want them to turn it all around and go back. Turn the bird around guys! We are in the wrong place.
Another blogger from the midwest, Wisconsin I believe, had asked me once before if we had covered or indoor arenas out here. She was thinking to come down in the winter time. I had to laugh. Mostly because we do have covered arenas, but it is because of the intensity of the sun in the summertime. Not because of the snow or rain in the winter. Winter is prime riding season around here.
I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and a safe holiday. Try to stay cool too. That includes drinking a lot of water and maybe playing in it! Just not from the same source I hope...
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I was in a tiny little town called Blue Ridge this morning ,Pop about 800 max , and they have done enoufh fund raising to build a splash park! All kinds of sprinklers and toys things to sit on and climb on ! very cool! I did not loose all professionalism and jump in ,but if I was there later in the day...
ReplyDeleteFern- I would have gone for it. Why not? That's what it is there for and people can understand. If they can't? Well then, that's their problem. They can sweat it out.
ReplyDeleteCNJ,
ReplyDeleteI hear you girl. We have had a couple of really nice days, but temps will be climbing back to the upper 90's to 100 plus the damn humidity. Add that to my friggin hot flashes and you can imagine how pleasant I am to be around.
I remember the blogger asking about the covered/indoor arenas in the winter. I also remember getting a chuckle out of it.
I DO NOT miss the summer heat in The Valley. I swear, the last summer I was there, I thought I was going to go crazy.
ReplyDeleteI didn't understand when people said that it gets so hot in the summer that even swimming isn't any fun until after it happened. When it is so hot that even the unheated pool water feels too warm...that is HOT.
uhhggg..... the a/c on my car can't keep up with the heat this time of year. Its been recharged and it still will take nearly 30 minutes to feel 'cool' inside the car. Inside the house? Forget it. The house is a giant aluminum box. We bake. A/c is 20 years old and though we just got it repaired, who knows how long it will last.
ReplyDeleteThe clouds tease. Horribly. Yesterday while out about 2pm grocery shopping it LOOKED like it might actually storm.
And of course, nope. Nothing.
118 yesterday? Felt every single degree of it. Walk outside and melt is what that is.
Fern - I would also have just jumped in willy nilly. But then I usually don't care what others think of me. I'm secure with who I am, sorry if they arent' with themselves. When working in a barn this time last year, I was supposed to be professional too... darned if there wasn't a day that by 9am I didn't have my head upsidedown in the washrack soaking my hair. Throw it back in a bun, nobody notices that its not combed, its wet, its wild.
Every 20 min, or every other stall, wetting down my own head. Horses got sprayed daily too with water. They learn to anticipate it, love it. Wait for it and crave it. So much fun.
The local city pool is finally open this year after being closed in the rotation last 2 summers. Took the kids monday for a while in late afternoon. Got in myself. Water was nearly 90 degrees - warm but still semi-refreshing. Felt sooo good to just sit there and float in the water.
Can't wait for the first real storm.
Got to go and shower and get ready for the day. Errands to run before work - while its 115. Wonder why I even bother with the shower some days.....
Those garden soaker hoses make great stall misters. A friend who has racehorses uses them. They're cheap, can be strung up anywhere near a faucet, and don't use too much water.
ReplyDeleteCould we just add our two temperatures together to get a happy medium?! 54 degrees here and raining...aGAIn...
OK I won't complain about our highs of 90 coming up this week... it's the lows of 71 that make it ooky. But our humidity is NOTHING compared to Louisville and points south & east.
ReplyDeleteStill, south central IN is the farthest south I ever want to live - unless I can move to the Hoosier National Forest, which boasts the best trail riding I've yet experienced.
This here is just about my Dream Home:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.countryhomesofindiana.com/indiana/index.cfm?detail=&inv_id=169135
That is a pretty place!
ReplyDeleteIt s as clse to heaven as you can get in Indiana ;)
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteIt was 60 here and overcast with sprinkles off and on. Miserable 4th of July. But I don't know if I'd want 118 either, just a happy in between!
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to let you all know, we had a cold spell here yesterday. It was 107.
ReplyDeleteI hate when the stupid weathermen here say 'today's high is 118, but get ready for a cool down over the weekend as we get down to highs around 110'
They always say that with a smile.
I remember working up in Scottsdale in the 80's. I had to get horses ridden by 10am as we sometimes had days that got up to 125.
Then during the monsoons, it seemed like everyday the storms rolled in around 4 pm and the tem would drop 25
degrees. And it would pour for an hour.
The thing is the heat during the day you expect. But when it is over 100 degrees at 10pm. That really sucks!
Definitely time to move.
When I lived in Katy TX. I remember being drakes with sweat by 7am and everything in the barn always smelled like mildew. So I guess both types of heat suck. But when you hardly ever see rain, you tend to want to be where there is more humidity so there is a better chance of rain.
When CNJ and I went to Alaska a few years ago. It was cold at night and we slept with the window open. Had to enjoy the cold as long as we could.
118? Holy heatstroke! Remind me not to complain about the temps around here in the summer. We're in Alabama, and after living in South Florida for a couple of years I have a deep appreciation for the climate in this state. Couldn't even go two steps out the door in Florida before completely wilting (even at 5 and 6a.m. - Blech!) I can, for the most part, take the heat here as long as the humidity doesn't go crazy.
ReplyDeleteUgh. I was in South Florida once in August. 'nuff said. It's like winter in Minnesota, except you're running from air conditioning to air conditioning.
ReplyDeleteThis part of Indiana is generally OK - we don't get a lot of below-20 days in the winter, and we don't get a lot of over-90 days in the summer. We do have humidity, but nothing like FLorida, Alabama or Texas. We don't get more than 1 or 2 snowstorms a winter, and not much destructive tornado activity.
Of course, we also don't have any mountains or beaches, or jobs for that matter, except around Indianapolis, which is booming.
In my county, AQHA, APHA and a smattering of ApHA reigns supreme, though if you go one county east in Ohio, there's a bunch more equestrian diversity for some reason. And around the Dayton/Cincinnati corridor, a fair amount of hunter/jumper activity, and at least one hunt club.
Southern Indiana boasts some AMAZING trail riding, and a culture conducive to such. Also the Hoosier Horse Park is a very nice showground. It was built for the 1986 Pan Am games, which was where I got to see Gem Twist, For The Moment,etc. 3 hours from the Kentucky Horse Park, so I'm trying to figure out which WEG events I can attend.
We're 100 miles from Columbus, OH, and QH Congress.
Land and good hay are cheap and plentiful. Water? No one even thinks about water. We're limestone country, and farmers have to tile their fields for drainage. Full board at a decent place runs $200-$400/month.
So that's my plug. It's a good place to have horses. Even with the tanking economy, people are hanging onto their horses. We have over 40 members in our 4H club, and that's just ONE horse & pony club in this county.
My only issue right now is BUGS. We had a rainy start to the summer, so the mosquitoes are the size of turkey vultures. The cicadas are out now, and newcomers to the area are all like "WHAT is that NOISE????" Fireflies are pretty awesome this year....
Alberta , you have seen pictures, economy is good people are awsome , schools/public education among the best in the world.Most years you can grass horses from May till Oct. Just sayin. Except for the nasty freakin coldsnaps that happen in winter we are practically freaking perfect!
ReplyDeleteI remember driving through Alberta in 1986... nice place!
ReplyDeleteMy dad's from Nortwestern Iowa, where it's rolling prairie. Really beautiful. I could be happy in western SD, I think....
Yes... my well has actually run just about dry because of having no rain... have to get a water tank installed this week... wondering where the flipping monsoons are!!!!
ReplyDeleteI was down last week for the warped tour.... I think it was 115... oddly enough it didn't feel too bad but I just kept pouring water on myself. I can't imagine working horses in that heat, it's bad enough working them up here when it's in the 90's!
When my husband and I went to Devil's Tower about 6 years ago, I hiked all the way around it (a very powerful place, I can't put my finger on it)... but after we got back to the car I started feeling funny.
ReplyDeleteFinally I realized that I was dehydrated - but around here, that means you've got sweat running off you like crazy.
Out there, it just *dried* ...
I keep telling yall to get your asses over here!!! We're doing alright, expecting some rain soon, it's only been a week since we last had some. Grass is still pretty green and it's still cool enough to ride, even with the humidity. I'd be riding if I wasn't planning my step dad's funeral :(
ReplyDeleteGotta go, shower time and off to do my errands.
We have our share of bugs too. Although I wish we didn't. Like the flies that are constantly eating away at poor Mondo. I soaked him with fly spray the other day then rubbed it into his coat with a rag. The oil based stuff sticks with him for extended periods and is keeping the flies away. The hair should be growing back soon...
ReplyDeleteOur COB mare Berry, (Crazy Ol' B_____! Bat, Broad, Booger, Bozo, Bitch- whatever fits at the moment) got a new mask and thinks she is just the queen of all things that surround her. I will get a photo of it. She is quite proud of it and was galloping around to show it off. Looney broad.
Then on Monday morning I found a wasp nest in our horse trailer. Right inside the back door. Up along the roof. I closed up all the windows in hopes of baking them but good. The roof vents are still open and I am NOT going in to close them! There were about 30 wasps on the nest 'sleeping'.
I hope to post pictures of it. Kind of haunting in a way, and certainly creepy enough. They will be gone with one good, long, soaking blast of spray, but until they drop dead, they are sure to be incredibly pissed. Thankfully that stuff shoots a powerful stream from a distance!
Bring on the monsoons. As JR said, the storms used to roll in like clockwork, EVERY DAY around 4pm. The dust would fly, the rain would come and in an hour or so it was over and you went about your way. The thunder storms would roll in and were amazing to watch, with incredible displays of lightening. With all of the buildings and pavement soaking up the sun during the day- Pheonix is now a heat island. The 'weather' goes around us.
Oh Cattypex we have the cicadas here too. This is the time of year they come out too - used to be the clear indication of when the monsoons were starting. Now, the weather service decided that each year June 15th is the 'official' start to the season. w/e.
ReplyDeleteI think last year we had, what, 3? good storms? There was the one that was nearly a hurricane that broke the massive pine tree in my mothers front yard - sent it into her roof and front porch - but beyond that there was nada. I'm thinking this year might end up being the same way. Watching the clouds and not a thing is happening.
What a weird place for hornets to build a nest though - inside a horse trailer? Thats the first I've heard of that. At least its easy to get down, and easy to close up.
Hope nobody gets hurt when it comes down!