Throughout this year, several bloggers will engage in a conversation here and on their blogs — asking questions of each other and responding. Others are absolutely welcome to join the conversation, as well. Learn more about the ladies of Blogversation 2012.
Joining the Blogversation today is Mary Jean Babic, a Brooklyn-based writer and a new blogger on a Tumblr site called Her Royal Babicness.
What do you do to deal with the heat? Beyond blasting the AC, that is.
When we had that cool snap recently, the first thing I did was turn on the oven and bake something.
We have these undercounter lights in the kitchen that throw off so much heat I make a point of not turning them on on hot days.
I also swear I once heard of a woman who put her panties in the freezer, but that might have been something I read in a novel. Still, it’s not a bad idea.
Mary Jean recently helped lead block party planning to get her neighbors celebrating summer in the street so I thought this little musical number might be a good fit for her post …
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9G4jnaznUoQ]
Blogversation 2012: What do you do to deal with the heat?
6 Comments
Eleanor Traubman
There is no AC in my home office. If I work there for more than 10 minutes, I melt like the wicked witch of the west in The Wizard of Oz. So I feel incredibly blessed to have my graduate school library – cool, calm, pleasant, with windows, near a cafeteria and people i like – as my “home away from home” office. I also find refuge at 3 different YMCAs whose swimming pools I swim and stretch in. And then there is the lobby/lounge of a nearby hotel where I go to watch The Olympics, award shows, and also read the paper. So for me there’s gotta be both cool temperatures plus a great vibe and friendly people whose names I know and vice versa. Oh, one more thing! My husband Mike makes incredible popsicles from fresh berries and simple syrup. Thanks, good man!
Lesley
I just wear see through maxi dresses everyday. Just kidding, lol:)!
I’ve been trying to ignoring it. I’m also drinking lots of water and keeping everything simple — from what I eat to how I dress. It makes me feel chill in the heat.
John T.
I LEAVE NEW YORK!
But seriously, sometimes I embrace it. I remember how awful it was being chilled to the bone, year-round, in San Francisco and how I swore I’d rather be too hot for a couple months than too cold for 12 in a row. So we take a lot of walks and do summery, outdoor stuff. When I over-heat, I hit a bench and watch the suckers slog by, using their legs like suckers. There are so many fine benches in our neighborhood. SO many.
Ignoring the heat helps, too. Denial. It works, denial. “Feh! You call this heat?” That sort of thing. Ignore it. Bitching doesn’t help much, but it does bring you closer to your neighbors.
And getting a Friedrich AC. Yep. None better. Friedrich: Ax for it by name! It’s not just blasting the AC, but it’s what AC you blast.
Colleen Newvine Tebeau
I had a boss who had a rule: you only get to complain about one weather extreme. I easily chose cold. I like being warm, I like walking out of the house without putting on a coat, hat, gloves and scarf, I like little sundresses and the beach …
But I don’t like when it’s *so* hot that I don’t really get to enjoy the summer. I don’t want to be under house arrest in our air conditioning.
So I do what I can to enjoy it: maybe taking early morning or late night walks to enjoy being outside when it’s not peak heat, staying in the shade, not overly exerting myself.
I’ve gotten an ambulance ride to the ER because of heat exhaustion before, so I learned that drinking lots of water is not enough. Your body needs to replace those electrolytes it loses when you sweat. And I sweat a lot. That can mean Gatorade or its competitors, or even easier, something salty like tomato juice or a pickle and potassium like in a banana. You don’t need to eat them at the same time. 🙂
Amy Throndsen
I love your comments and I choose cold, too! 🙂
Amy Throndsen
I don’t have AC now (2 bedroom apartment in Madison, Wisconsin) and didn’t have AC in China for 3 summers – where the heat index and smog was enough to smother you. I learned to actually like the heat and be able to function in it. HOWEVER, it was completely customary (in my part of China) for business to be conducted by men who had their shirts rolled up over their belly’s. Yes, I’m not kidding. Less appropriate for women, of course, was the shirt roll, but we were not expected to wear a suit and make-up. It was expected that everyone would be covered in sweat. In the US, that is obviously not the case. So, there’s give and take, but when I’m hot I try to remember that it’s likely that more than a billion people around the world deal with the heat and do just fine.
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