Help Me, I’m Melting!
What time of year do you have to stay inside?
Posted by Arwen Mosher
in Just me
on Friday, June 05, 2009 3:30 PM
Remember back in January when I teased Rachel about complaining that 26º was a cold outdoor temperature? Because we up here in Michigan are so tough when it comes to weather?
Now is when my words come back to bite me. Or, more appropriately, to roast me. Summer’s hot weather always shows me what a wimp I am.
A month ago I was down in southern Florida for my sister’s college graduation, and the high was in the mid-90s every day we were there. I was in agony. It was SOOOO hot. Three days was enough to melt me.
I looked at the houses on every residential street and thought, “How can anyone live here? It’s unbearable!”
But then I realized that summer for people who live in southern Florida is like winter for us up here in Michigan: it’s the time when you stay inside.
Rachel said exactly the same thing during our podcast last week.
It’s a trade-off. Up here in the north we get long, warm summer days in which to play outside. Down south they can wear shorts on Easter.
I looked it up, and the average daily high temperature during June, July and August down where Rachel lives in Georgia is nearly ten degrees higher than it is in my town. When I’m complaining about the occasional 90-degree day, she’s enduring them as a matter of course.
So for Rachel - and especially in honor of her birthday today - I’m making two pledges today. First, this summer I’m going to enjoy our lovely 82º days when I can sit under a tree and watch my toddler run through the sprinkler and be completely comfortable while I’m doing it. Second, when winter comes around again, I’m going to remember that my neighbors to the south went through their own grueling weather in July and August, and that they deserve to be able to play outside in February.
Because as much as I may posture about my ability to withstand 3-degree temperatures, summertime proves it: when it comes to weather, I’m no tougher than the next guy.
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