MeXscape

Our getting-ready-for-bed routine was disrupted by an appallingly loud noise in the front of our house. It sounded like someone trying to pound their way through our front gate. Chuck and I looked at each other, and he went to peek out the window to see what was going on. As he was headed through the living room, the noise changed to resemble something more like someone hammering on concrete with a large sledgehammer. I nervously waited for Chuck to come back. When he did, his shoulders were shaking with laughter. Dying to find out why, I rushed to the window to have a look for myself.

It was so hot for so long this summer. Not just normal heat, but a my-eyeballs-are-sweating-and-I-am-losing-fluids-so-quickly-I-may-just-completely-evaporate kind of heat. We woke up in the morning with so much rime on the sheets it looked like chalk outlines at a murder scene. Going to the beach was so much work, requiring major preparation and a Hydration Plan, that we just didn't bother most Sundays. We instead opted to sit in the air conditioning and have Movie Day.

Hurricane Rick had everyone in a panic when the news hit that the category 5 storm was the second strongest hurricane ever recorded in the East Pacific – and was headed for Mazatlán. But, the Virgin of the Port continued her vigil, and Rick was only a tropical storm with maximum sustained winds of 55 mph when it made landfall here – a kitten of a storm as far as these things go. Yeah, there was some damage, but nothing compared to the first storm of the season, and that storm didn't even qualify for a name.

This is the Energizer summer. It just keeps going, and going, and going. We are still hitting daily heat indexes in the 106° - 109° range. I call 105° "escape temperature", which means that I gather my stuff, duck into the bedroom, and turn on the AC — something that makes the dogs very happy.

A couple of weeks ago, I revised my appropriate air conditioning policy yet again to include anytime the heat index hits 105. It's a slippery slope. But geez, it's hot. Here it is, not yet 11:00 in the morning, and I am writing this from my air conditioned bedroom because the humidity is 84%, making the heat index 107. The day has not yet gotten into full swing, and I am already limp.