Geez it's been hot this summer. It got hot early in the season, and the temperatures have just kept on climbing. And I don't think we have had nearly as many rainy days to bring relief. It has just been hot and humid. I had to quit keeping track of the weather when the heat index hit 107°F on Thursday. I just don't want to know. It makes it feel worse.
This is our fourth summer here. For the most part, summers have been pleasant. At least, the really, really hot part has been restricted to a few weeks. If it had been like this the first summer we visited, I can say with surety that we would not have moved here.
I still refuse to spend my day in the one room in the house with air conditioning, travel only in air conditioned cars, and go only to air conditioned businesses. First of all, I hate air conditioning. Second, I am not going to ruin three years of acclimatization by wimping out.
So how is a girl to keep her cool? After three years, I have a few things in my heat defense arsenal, and this year I have added a few more:
Keep It Clean
Frequent showers are a great way not only to keep me smelling fresh as a daisy (or, at least better smelling than I was), but to bring my body temperature down. This time of year I take three or four showers a day, and they are cool bliss, as long as I remember to let the water run first.
In our new house, we have several yards of exposed copper pipe on the roof. The first time I stepped in the shower for a mid day rinse off I almost scalded myself. Things were all right for the first minute or so as I was doused with the cool water from the pipes inside the walls. But then the water from the pipes on the roof hit. Yikes! It was hotter than the water from the water heater! I shrieked, jumped out, and waited another five minutes for the water to cool off again.
Stay Still
I know, duh. Don't get up and wax your floors in the middle of the day. This one is easy for me, since I work at my computer, but I still have to remind myself to take it easy. I have to resist the urge to do stupid stuff like sweep the courtyard in the afternoon sun.
Drink Your Pedialyte
Staying properly hydrated is critical not only to staying cool, but to your health. If you get dehydrated, not only does it feel hotter, but you are at risk of heat stroke and other unpleasant things.
Several summers ago I learned to switch to primarily water rather than sodas or other sugary drinks, but I still felt slow and stupid some days. A little research revealed that my electrolytes were out of whack. Water is great for replacing lost moisture, but no so good for replacing lost minerals.
Pedialyte, despite being the foulest brew ever to be commercially sold, is awesome at restoring electrolyte balance. The problem is how do you choke it down? Well, I discovered that orange juice is also pretty good for your electrolytes, and it masks the flavor of Pedialyte pretty darn well. Every morning I mix a few ounces of Pedialyte in with a glass of orange juice, and that keeps me able to string together a cogent thought for the entire day. If it has been a really hot day, I will have a glass before bed too.
Pass on the Pacifico
In fact, lay off all the alcohol. Everyone who knows me knows that I can put away more than my fair share of Pacifico, but not in the summer. Alcohol is very dehydrating. One beer is enough to make me start sweating and desperate for a glass of ice water.
Of course, a cold beer tastes so refreshing that sometimes I just can't pass one up. But I will usually request a glass of ice (get over it, it's normal here) and add enough lime that is is more like a shandy. More refreshing and less dehydrating.
I think some bar should save us all a lot of trouble and come out with Pedialyte cocktails. Just imagine Pedialyte Pina Coladas or Pedialyte Papaya Daquiris.
Hair Cut
Yes, I finally gave in and got the It's Hot Haircut. I have been stubbornly clinging to my thick, curly tresses, mostly because Chuck likes my hair long. But this year, I just couldn't take it anymore. Having all that curly hair was like walking around with Corning Pink on my head. Plus, I kept it in a pony tail all the time, which was both unattractive and gave me headaches. So, now it's all gone.
The big bonus is now I can stick my head under the faucet every time I get in the shower. It used to take 7 or 8 hours for my hair to dry, now it dries in about 1.
What do you do to keep cool during the hot Mazatlan summer?
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|SAdministrator |m-d-Y H:i:s jenniferThe sponge is an interesting idea. I noticed a lot of the girls walking home from school are wearing headbands, and they have a ton at the accessory shops. The only problem with them is that they have big fake gems all over them and are still at least partially polyester and so they are hot and don't absorb as well as I anticipated. If I am really sweating, I still get sweat in my eyes. I will have to try your sponge idea.
Thanks for the tips!
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|200.77.75.xxx |m-d-Y H:i:s NancyI've bought plain headbands here at the grocery store...but don't forget a bandanna! The perfect headband! and I think you could put a sponge inside just fine.
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|200.77.75.xxx |m-d-Y H:i:s NancyOne thing I have done is if I have chores to do, or exercising, whatever will make me sweat, I do them all in the morning, sweat like crazy, and then shower and dress normally. I just get cranky if I sprinkle my chores throughout the day and I am hot hot hot all the time, and wrecking my clothes. Plus I can get into sweating for some reason.
I make a lot of iced tea and vegie smoothies for hydration. I can't drink gatorade or pedialyte, just something so artificial tasting to me. There are some recipes online for homemade electrolyte replacement, I would be curious if anyone has tried one.
I seriously considered spending an ungodly amount of money (I blocked out the price just know it was a lot) on one of those giant industrial fans...you could set that sucker up and blow all the hot air out or cool in in a moment.
Hang in there, girl, we need to get together soon, maybe a beach day is in order - that would cool us off!
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|SAdministrator |m-d-Y H:i:s jenniferI have just started to change my schedule up to take advantage of the morning coolness. I used to like to get up around 7:30 or 8, which is way too late in the summer. I now get up around 5 or 6, which has helped my productivity immensely. Sometimes I even manage to get an afternoon nap, which is another good tip. Sleep through the hottest part of the day.
I also contemplated one of those fans. I think around $5000MXP at Sam's.
We both have our offices in the casita. It has one door and one window, which both open on the courtyard. Private and charming, but no chance for a cross breeze. And with all the compter equipment generating heat...well, I thought one of those fan's would be just the ticket. But I realized I would rather be hot than listen to that noise all day.
Yes, a beach day is the best way of all to cool off! We should definitely have a play day.
Overcast 63 oF • 17 oC
Another trick is to take a small sponge & fashion a sweat band for the forehead in order to keep the sweat from getting in the eyes.