Sitting in the Shadows to Stay Cool
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Each day’s objective right now is to get the things that must be done outdoors done early to avoid the hottest part of the day.
I just don’t recall it being this hot last year. And oh heavens! We have August and September to go!
I have extra table fans going in the living room and small office area. And I keep an eye on the outdoor cats’ water and food. They don’t even seem to want to eat in this heat.
I think many of them go down into nextdoor neighbor Smitty’s basement when it gets very hot and very cold. I’m thankful they have that.
I’ve had to order 70% blackout curtains for the laundry room because the window is in the western sun exposure. I’m doing everything I can because it goes up to near 80 in here around 3 p.m. and stays that way till midnight.
Chore For The Day:
I’m washing bedding today. I got up and made scrambled eggs, turkey bacon, and raisin toast for breakfast. Tonight I will have tostadas with the leftover refried beans and Mexican corn I prepared last night.
My tostadas are meatless. Just refried beans, onion, and tomato. Still, I found it quite tasty. I don’t even miss the meat. The only meat I currently eat, and I guess it isn’t meat, is tuna fish.
Some nights I’ll mix tuna up with mayonnaise, onion, and relish and toast bread for a sandwich. The cats beg (this is the only time they beg for table food), and I give them a little tuna each.
I’m trying not to even turn on the toaster/convection oven. And I certainly won’t be turning on the oven! I’m eating meals warmed in the microwave and calling it good.
The Container Garden:
The container garden was already looking bedraggled from all the rain before this intense heat. I don’t think my cucumber plant is producing any more, and the tomato plant bit the dust.
So much for the gardening season of summer 2026. Guess I can start planning next year’s garden in my head.
I look around me at all that needs to be done and just can’t get myself up and doing chores like vacuuming and mopping. Just don’t have the bandwidth.
I’d been putting off laundering bedding for days as it is. But today I pushed through the lethargy to do it.
I find myself sitting mostly in the shadows every day because I just hate to turn on the lights. Does it just seem like you’re cooler without the lights turned on, or does it actually lower the temperature? I don’t know.
My water thermos goes where I go, and I find myself sipping it greedily because of the heat. I know some people who hate water, but I love the refreshing taste of it. And it’s so healthy for you!
That’s all I’ve got today. Try to stay cool and hydrated!
Some cities are already having “brown-outs” because the electric grid is overwhelmed by everyone running AC. I am not using the clothes dryer preferring to air dry laundry on the backporch or kitchen chairs. I also have stopped using the big oven and few lamps or lighting. Thank goodness we are having thunder showers nearly every afternoon. I need AC more than any other appliances right now.
I try to do anything that needs gardening or maintenace outside by noon and I start as early as sunrise. No one else is up yet. To be clear, it’s mostly pinching back, watering, and disposing of dead plant. Not ashamed to be doing laundry/washing floors/cleaning bathrooms at 5 a.m. Being an early riser has its benefits.
You’re right. Early bird gets the worm.
The heat is relentless this year! My electric bill this month was higher than usual and I’ve set the thermostat to 78°-79°, and I’ve been running a fan almost constantly. I find I’m quite comfortable as long as it’s blowing directly on me. It’s hard to motivate myself to do much of anything in this heat. Fall seems like forever away! Love the pictures of the kitties!
Something doesn’t seem right with my central air conditioning. I’ve got three extra fans going and have ordered another one.
Ugh…hate super hot weather…and you no doubt have plenty of humidity to go around. It is hot here but not more than usual so far as I can see. Your kitties chose chairs that the colors go well with their fur…funny things!! We have been eating a lot of a salad I make chopping up part of a long cuke that comes in plastic wrap, tomatoes, sliced black olives, onion ( have dried on hand), a handful of curly noodles (requires boiling of course, then after dumping water, I add a bunch of ice cubes and let it get cold), some chopped turkey lunchmeat, and a dressing: 1 T. Olive Oil, 1 T. Lemon Juice, 1 t. or more Honey…mix well and combine. Even my picky husband loves it. And it is so refreshing…no lettuce etc. I think other veggies would be nice added too. Cheese too if one likes it. Even some chopped boiled eggs might be nice. You know boiled eggs are what I do if very hot, or the electricity may be off at some point, etc. So quick. I put in small pan with cold water, add some salt and a teaspoon of rice vinegar and bring to a boil, slap on lid, turn off heat, put timer to 18-20 min. depending on egg size. Does not impact house at all due to steam or heat. Make sure to eat enough protein if not eating much meat, Brenda…us oldies need such too!! Beans are good…wish I could still eat them…I love the taste!! We use Almond Milk and quite often nuts in things. Stay cool!!
PS…forgot to add to salad, that we have been putting in a small sweet pepper, chopped small as well…
I have a little electric egg maker I use. I eat boiled eggs if it’s too hot. Last night I had a strange conglomeration of refried beans, rice, tomatoes, onions, and corn in a bowl.
It has also been very hot here in TN. It’s that awful humidity that puts us in triple digits. I hate to see what my electric bill will be. I do have ceiling fans which helps but in the afternoons it’s just too hot. Because I have OA and fibromyalgia this heat and humidity just takes every bit of energy away. My cucumbers have big the dust and my tomatoes are suffering. I think my green pepper plants aren’t too happy either. I’m really looking forward to Fall. Summers just keep getting worse.
I too drink a lot of water and loaded teas. They keep me hydrated.
Hope you can stay cool and the heat breaks soon in your area.
Common for triple digits here, and the humidity is horrid.
It is hot here too in Wisconsin. But we do have clear skies for once. I won’t complain though as two cities got hit by a tornado on Monday. About 45 minutes from us. One has been demolished for miles. So many left homeless! We were under a warning on Monday, but it went south. I feel so bad for everyone. Including the people that didn’t get hit as a lot of them lost their jobs. Businesses that were hit.
Oklahoma gets those tornadoes. Wipes out miles.
Yes, it sure is hot. I am grateful for those who help cut our grass. We keep the blinds closed in the very cold or very hot. It does seem cooler and I do like a sunny, bright house but it kinda feels cozy. Thank goodness we have a microwave or we wouldn’t eat! Stay cool all!
The microwave sure serves its purpose in very hot weather.
I love water too! I have a cup of tea in the morning and the rest of the day I drink water!
I have one cup of coffee per day and occasionally tea or root beer. But I prefer water too.
My soda of choice is root beer also.