Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Wednesday.... HOT Wednesday

Just in case some of you might have thought I was Pulling Your Leg about our Heat here in Lake Havasu, Arizona ...I bopped out last evening around 7:00 PM and took a picture of our Thermometer right outside our back door ... Yes...you are reading that correctly...it says 115.... now remember this is 7:00 PM...in the shade ,close to our cooler back door.... just imagine for a moment what it is like out in the sun away from shade.... GULP!!

OK...I will give you a moment or so to recover and regain composure ... It is a bit of a shock to the system when first is heard the words...."115 in the shade".... the body goes into an immediate spasm and it takes a few to shake it off...run outside and kiss whatever cool ground your neck of the woods lies in.... Yes, this is Summer in the Arizona Desert.

We have been having a exceptionally hot one this year... started slow but hit us right between the eyes when our backs were turned with thoughts of "Oh it's gonna be cooler this year"...HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAH......rehydrate.....HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAH..... rehydrate.......HAHAHAHAHAHA.
To open the front door to retrieve mail in the Havasu Heat... is like opening the oven door during Auto Cleaning (you know, the temp that turns all the baked on gookie stuff in your oven to 'Ash'....)...and then standing there for 10 minutes just taking it all in....

It is watching little Quail Families run faster than a speeding bullet across the blacktop street, seeing birdies hanging out in droves in your front pond...standing waist deep (do birds have waists??) beaks wide open panting with wings out stretched to their sides alllll day long....

Hanging wet towels on the outside line and having them half way dry before reaching the line...totally dry by the time you reach the back door...and turning around to retrieve them...

Carrying no less than 3 bottles of water with you at any one time in a small personal ice bag when you go anywhere..

And last but not least... being witness to some of the most gawd awful summer outfits you have ever seen in your life.... what people will 'or won't' wear to keep cool...BE AFRAID...BE VERY AFRAID!!!
Neighbors don't gather during these months ...there is only a weak wave of exhaustion exchanged as garbage cans are dragged to the curb.... few children play outside ...well ya gotta admit, not much fun playing ball with other neighbor kids while your mom is frantically running along side making you drink gallons of Gator aide and placing wet towels around your neck... puts a real crimp in the whole free to be a kid thing...

This is the time of year you sit or float in water, get all outside chores done before 6:00 am, visit the Movies a lot.... spend looooong luxurious hours strolling the isles of Walmart, carry an ice chest everywhere you go, and play lots of 'indoor' board games with friends and family.

I know I made Arizona (Havasu to be exact) sound like a suburb of Hell... and in truth, it really is not. I will say that it is not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach in the summer time...a good reason I guess that all our 'Snow Birds' fly back to their cooler regions...only to return in early fall...AHHHHHH Early Fall...a LOVELY time of the year ...and a time we all wait for with great anticipation of cooler more enjoyable times. There are few places more lovely than the desert in fall, winter and spring.... temps that are mild and sooo pleasant, breezes that bring scents of orange blossoms and Texas Laurel , no frost, no snow, just pleasant all around weather....the kind of weather you can plan outdoor activities ...with few surprises.

I wait for this time as do all Havasuvians ...watching the calender, for the Birds Beaks to close.... and the blast furnace to feel luke warm when the door is open...all the true signs that the relief of fall is not far behind...

Jodi aka 'Hot Headed Hannah'

24 comments:

Debbie said...

Jodi we could do with some good weather over here. Its been raining for the last couple of days and some of Wales are having flash floods. Apparently its due to the jet stream bringing in all this rain.. I wish it would stream off somewhere else.

clairedulalune said...

Oh, I do feel for you! we had a heat wave recently, and I was not at all prepared. I am still saying sorry to certain people for my nippy behaviour and constant grunting!

Tallulah Belle said...

Oh goodness me....that's HOT !

What did it get up to mid afternoon...I probably don't want to know.

I've found it is almost impossible to explain to someone what these temperatures feel like so we try and take all of our visitors out to Death Valley :-)

Definitely something worth experiencing once in a while...but not daily lol.

Creager Studios said...

Tell ya what Debbie...I'll trade you a couple weeks of sun ...for a couple weeks of rain...we need the water badly and sounds like you might enjoy the sun...

That nasty old jet stream is at it again...UGH

Hugs,
Jodi

Creager Studios said...

Hi Claire...

I can relate to the snippy nippy attitude... when our heat rises...friends and family know to stear clear of me!!lol

Hugs,
Jodi

Creager Studios said...

OK Jayne...you asked...ready for it...ready ready.... has been 119 - 124 .... but we have had a cool down (insert laughter here) of 114 some days...not yesterday I am afraid.

Death Valley...a reason they call it that lovely name...it is a beautiful place at certain times of the year...I think there is a 15 minute window of opportunity in April!!!LOL

Hugs,
Jodi

Caseymini said...

Hey Jodi! We had a real cool down on this end of the state. It is only 96° at the airport right now and their temp predicts 102° for the day. Yesterday it was 107°at the airport. At our house it was 114°. It's downright cold here now!LOL

nikkinikkinikki72 said...

Sounds like hell. My worst nightmare!
Give me a brisk cold icy day, with frozen spiderwebs and warm cosy gloves. Then home to a nice warm house and a cup of chocolate or even better a nice thick duvet to snuggle into, and a feeling of happiness knowing i'm snuggled up and out of the cold.
I love snow, ice and wind and long for it every year. I should have been an eskimo... lol.
The poor little birdies, i feel sorry for them. Do they not think to fly away?

Bearly Sane said...

Know what the heat feels like only too well...good time to sit in a cool bath and read a book!
My Blog

Tallulah Belle said...

Insert hysterical laughter I should think. 124...that's insane.

Karin Corbin said...

Normally I would be sitting here all smug and gloating about how lovely and cool our weather is while the rest of the nation is burning. But today we broke the record for all time high temperature in Seattle, at 5pm is was officially 103 degrees at the airport and still rising. Tomorrow is predicted to be a repeat. This is not dry heat our humidity index is high and in this region of the USA very few homes and business have air conditioning.
My workshop has a cave like climate it is currently at 70 degrees with no air conditioning. I am camping here tonight.

Abi said...

Sounds like you need to move to England! I don't miss the rain and cool breeze there! having said that, Texas heat is kicking my butt!
Just wanted to say thank you for sharing your skills and expertise -I am finally getting the hang of sculpting heads, and just wish I'd see them before I attempted my first! :O)

julie campbell said...

OH thats HOT ! can just imagine those poor wee birds and dont know how you manage to work. I was a bit envious though about your towels drying so fast, we have had rain for days here in tyneside UK and I have a whole heap of soggy towels that wont dry anywhere .
Would definitely rather be chilly than hot though, a logfire wins out over a beach anytime for me :0)
julie xx

Jo Raines said...

Good Gawd, woman! That's hot!!!!!!!! I thought we had hot summers here in the south but you've got us beat, thank goodness.

Jody
http://minileapsandbounds.blogspot.com/

Creager Studios said...

Hi Casey... You always are a tad cooler in your neck of the state...I think you are higher...right? I LOVE Tucson...you get more rain and COOL storms too...sniff sniff!

Hugs,
Jodi

Creager Studios said...

Hi Nikki...

WOW...you do sound part Eskimo! We had our share of cold, wet, snowy, icy, frozen days and nights when we lived in Oregon...could not remove ourselves quickly enough...beautiful state...just to much of the above for us!! We are just desert rats who enjoy sun and warmth I guess...our poor aching bones could no longer take the cold and wet...
The Birdies are here all year...find a wet cooler spot and hang out...and you can't believe the birdies that come here in our fall and winters...we have hummingbirds by the droves all through the summer...we are actually right on a wonderful flyway.

Hugs,
Jodi

Creager Studios said...

Oh Yes Sandi...I have been known to do just that....lol

Hugs,
Jodi

Creager Studios said...

Hi Jayne...

Yep, I guess many would say insanity , and perhaps we do have a small touch of it... but believe it or not...the lovely weather is already on it's way...this morning it was positivly beautiful outside...with a slight cool breeze...what a difference a day can make...
Hugs,
Jodi

Creager Studios said...

Hi Karin...

We are in shock about the weather in your neck of the woods...we know what it is like normally up there...and it has been anything but normal for you guys... Please try to stay cool...it should pass soon , if not already. Richard's brother lives in Seattle and is freaking out.

Hugs,
Jodi

Creager Studios said...

Hi Abi...

Yes indeedy...parts of Texas are being hit hard by heat and drought... bummer.
Try to keep cool.
I guess you are referring to my YOUTUBE Lessons? Glad they are helping out....and thanks so much for letting me know...

Hugs,
Jodi

Creager Studios said...

Hi Julie...

Ahhhh but there is nothing sweeter than a Log fire at the Beach!! Either right on the beach...or in a cozy little cottage overlooking the sea/beach... oh and I almost forgot...a nice bottle of wine...lol

Hugs,
Jodi

Creager Studios said...

Hi Jody...

Yep...I think we have most places beat...at least for a few weeks out of the year. Believe it or not it does not bother me that much...only when we get our humidity(july and part of August) that mixed with the heat...well...can you say 'SAUNA!!!" Great for non stop facials!!

Hugs,
Jodi

Marie S said...

had to come back to read this when I was feeling up to it, it was making me sick and i was starting to swoon. Right now I can only use one hand to type while the other mops my brow. but you are so right when you said at the end that it is so gorgeous during the rest of the year. one of the prettiest places to live.
so you could become sun birds... lOl!
i do remember it being 127 in the shade one year when I was young at black meadow, my flip flops were melting on the stones.

Creager Studios said...

Hi Marie...

LOL... I know , for many the mere print out of 124 degrees has been known to make grown men weep!
Yes...Sun Birds...I like it!! Of course those of us that stay all through the summer have been known as 'DODO Birds' from time to time.

Big Hugs
Jodi