The Heat Is On

When there’s nothing to talk about you can always talk about the weather,
which has probably been used more than any other subject to break the ice
between people. You can be sure virtual strangers have begun conversations over the last couple of days by saying “how about the heat” and they’ll be using that opening line for at least one more day.

Yes we are going through the dog days of summer and yet summer doesn’t officially begin for another 11 days. Temperatures close to 100 have resulted in shortened school days and scattered power outages and many with health concerns have been forced to stay indoors. It’s a far cry from just a couple of weeks ago when we were complaining about the cool spring weather.

It’s always funny to me that usually those who complain the most about the heat are those who go from an air conditioned home to an air conditioned car to an air conditioned office. Meanwhile those they have to work through the heat and humidity pretty much accept their fate and do the best they can. Despite record-breaking temperatures on Monday it was not a day off for landscapers, construction workers and many others who you might have passed while driving with the AC on. They know a day off is a day without pay so you prepare and persevere the best you can much like you might on winter days when it’s very cold.

As extreme as we might think this weather is it’s nothing compared to what many are dealing with in other parts of the country where heavy rain and flooding have made life miserable in the Midwest, resulting in several deaths and a tremendous loss of property. A stretch of the Mississippi River is expected to be closed for a couple of weeks and the cleanup will take a lot longer than that.

Take solace in the fact that this heat wave is coming to an end so we’ll need something else to complain about. How about $4.00 a gallon gasoline and the play of the New York Mets?