posted on August 8, 2001 06:37:20 PM
I went out today when it was 98°F and tried to get in my car parked in the sun and go. It was so hot in my car I could not touch the steering wheel and there was a key laying on the seat and it burned my hand to pick it up.
I was getting sick to my stomach so I left it running and went back in and stepped in a cool shower. Took my shorts and t-shirt off but left my tennis shoes on. I stood in the
cool shower NOT cold until I felt better and put evey thing back on wet and went back down. Took a wet rag to cool the wheel.
By the time I drove to the drug store my stuff was all dry. I let the air run while doing my business. It really does not take much gas idling.
They found a guy here today passed out in his car and he died in the hospital. They had High School kids out doing football practice and one ended up in the hgospital. I can't believe they are dumb enough to put the kids out in this heat. I never knew a couch that was not dumb as a rock but someone should stop them. Is there a parent that knows it is not worth dying to make the team?
I am surprised the sweet corn is still pretty good here. It just has a little cobb on the end that has no kernals. A lot of the neighbor's shrubs and trees have died.
What is your heat story?
posted on August 8, 2001 06:48:30 PM
95 plus is an everyday thing in the summer here. Leaving kids / pets inside of cars even for 10 minutes while you run in the quicky store is real dumb, a car can get to 140 degrees real quick.
A heat story? The Army has "protective clothing" that is to be used in case of chemical weapons being used. Heavy, thick clothing. I saw almost a hundred cases of heat stroke one day in Texas when we "trained" wearing these suits and gas masks.
posted on August 8, 2001 07:11:02 PM
So all you have to do is lob in a few chemical shells and if the gas doesn't get them the suits will....
Brilliant. I suppose it would be too hard to design them with a water spray to cool them or semiconductor cooling moduales like the coolers you plug in your cigarette lighter.
I'd like to see a small unit made with a solar cell and a cooling moduale that could be rivited on a piece of clothing and it would self power and cool the side facing in.
You could cover the back of a jacket and it would be a sheet of cool across your back.
Any engineers out there?
posted on August 8, 2001 07:18:26 PM
Three manholes in different sections of Washington DC began smoking within hours of one another last night, and at least 1,500 customers lost power, in incidents that Pepco said may all have been caused by hot weather and high demand.
An unusual number of auto accidents were attributed to the heat.
Cars and other vehicles were particularly vulnerable in the heat as tires, belts and batteries failed in bumper-to-bumper congestion.
Tomorrow will be worse and people are being advised to stay at home if possible.
posted on August 8, 2001 07:27:56 PM
It was sooo hot, 98 degrees, dew point 50 makes it feel like 103 degrees....didn't go outside today...too hot, no real need. Either worked in air conditioning or had a fan blowing directly on me...boy does that
make packing ebay items fun...bubble wrap blowing in the breezes, tape flipping sticky side onto itself...nevertheless, it had to be done. This weather has been exceedingly uncomfortable and trying to contain the cost of our electric bill a real challenge.
posted on August 8, 2001 07:45:52 PM
Central Illinois - it's almost 10 pm here and still 81* out with a dewpoint of 74 and 83% humidity. Burned my a** and the backs of my legs on my leather car seat today!
Please, oh please let the weather people be right - it's supposed to cool off in a couple of days!
posted on August 8, 2001 07:46:48 PM
Old Florida trick for hot weather... Put a sprinker up on your roof. You would be surprised at how much it will cool off the inside of a Trailer. Works for stick built houses too, but not as well as.
posted on August 8, 2001 08:00:06 PMSo all you have to do is lob in a few chemical shells and if the gas doesn't get them the suits will....
I think that was what they where trying to teach us. They may have better ones now, that was in 1975. Same suits, Same training in Germany in the winter,and the suits where very pleasant.
posted on August 8, 2001 08:04:16 PM
A friend of mine had left a cooler in her trunk for a few days. When she went to get it, the edges had started to melt on it!
posted on August 8, 2001 08:16:23 PM
Miserable week so far in the boonies of NW Wisconsin. They are promising on the weather than it's done as of tonight. Please, God - let it be done. We live about 90 miles from the Twin Cities -- you know, the place where the Minnesota Viking died last week from heat stroke. He's only the most famous one up here to kick the bucket - old people and little kids are miserable. And I've lost five pounds! (This is a good thing, BTW!) Who can eat?
We have never had an air conditioner in this old house - never really needed one. eBay has been good to me the past couple of weeks, and on Monday I decided I needed AC NOW. Not a single window unit available. Anyplace.
High today here was 98. Humidity well into the seventies. Heat index was like 110. Ugh. Got home from making pizzas tonight and had to take an immediate shower - I had a fine film of flour sticking to me, since my skin hasn't been really dry in days. I felt like the damn dough boy...
They are forecasting 77 degrees for Friday. We will probably feel like we need sweaters...I don't care. I'm buying an air conditioner the minute the shipment hits Walmart!
We are now under a thunderstorm watch. Come on rain!!!!
posted on August 8, 2001 08:20:33 PM
Not to gloat, but its cold and foggy here. I have the heater on. Temperature is about 58 about now, got up to 70 today. Tomorrow its supposed to "cool off", which means high 60's.
posted on August 8, 2001 08:47:03 PM
I'm in Indiana, and last week we had a high school football player DIE in a nearby town. It was attributed to the heat.
posted on August 8, 2001 09:42:42 PM
Upstate NY here.... yesterday it was high of 95, today it was a little hotter than that, and they are saying tomorrow is going to be the worst - hitting 100 degrees. I only have 1 small AC and it's here in my computer room (where I spend 99% of my time!).
And rain? What's that? We need rain SO BAD!! There is no green grass anywhere.. you walk outside and it's crunch-crunch-crunch...
posted on August 8, 2001 09:51:17 PM
Sweltering here in Texas. It feels like I'm walking through an oven during the heat of the day so I try to stay indoors. The only good thing about it is that it's perfect swimming weather in the evenings.
posted on August 8, 2001 11:33:03 PM
Today the living room air conditioner died. The plug melted where the prongs that stick in the wall are encapsulated. the two prongs were that real red look like copper gets when you heat it with a torch. Big stink. I cut it off - put a new plug on and new socket in the wall but I think it screwed the compressor up. I brought a spare up from the basement but about croaked as it is big and heavy and I had no one to help pull the dolly up the stairs or lift it in the wall opening. At 2:30 in the morning it is still 80 °F with 81% humidity so I will keep it going all night. I am going out now though. We have a gas station nearby that sells gas for $1.12
and if you go in the middle of the night there is no line.
posted on August 8, 2001 11:45:51 PM
Here in Indy, it has been hot, hot, hot. We have had 90+ temperatures off and on, since last week. Nearly every day, we have been under no-zone advisories where folks are asked not mow the lawn, pump gas at the station, etc., during certain times of the day.
The weather index hovered Wednesday, I was told, at 104. I can believe it. And it's true, we lost a high school player last Wednesday due to heat stroke. He succumbed while he was at football practice.
I was at a high school early Wednesday morning where children are taking summer classes. There is no air conditioning in the building, save for the administration office, which has window units.
The children were getting sick from the heat. One girl vomited outside the door of her math classroom. She got ill before she could make it to the restroom.
Hopefully, the mercury will start to drop slightly by weekend.
posted on August 9, 2001 02:45:10 AMNow you all know why I hibernate in the summer here in Phoenix! Miserable ain't it? We hit 113 the other day, 109 yesterday. They don't do the heat index here, maybe they figure it's hot enough and don't want us to know what it really feels like?? You know they will delay flights into Phoenix because of the heat? This is our humid/rainy season, but we haven't been getting any rain. So our humidity has been 30-50+% for over a month, and I can't say it's a dry heat right now. We got lucky today, it was cloudy all day and it finally started raining at 1:30am. Of course my garage (eBay room) is flooding, but all of my eBay stuff is up!
Everyone take care and be safe. I know you guys aren't used to this. I hope the news people are doing their job and telling everyone not to leave kids or pets in the car! I heard a story last week that some mom left her two little ones strapped in their car seats and went inside to take a nap. Of course they both died and it was only 87 degrees. Not only was that really stupid, but lazy. Why do you use a car seat as a babysitter??
posted on August 9, 2001 04:58:13 AM
... Excessive Heat Warning Through This Evening...
The National Weather Service Has Issued An Excessive Heat Warning For Today... Continuing Through This Evening. The Mercury Is Expected To Soar To Record Breaking Values Near 100 Degrees Across Most Of Southern New England... Except Along The South Coast. This Will Combine With High Humidity Values To Create Heat Index Readings Of Near 110 Degrees... Especially This Afternoon And Evening.
This Is Much More Than A Typical Hot Summer Day Around Southern New England. Brutal Heat Index Values Around 110 Degrees Can Be Life Threatening... To People Of All Ages. However... Children And The Elderly As Well As People With Chronic Ailments Are Usually The First To Suffer From The Heat. Heat Exhaustion... Heat Cramps... Or In Extreme Cases Heat Stroke Can Result From Prolonged Exposure To These Conditions. Friends... Relatives... Or Neighbors Should Check On People Who May Be At Risk.
To Protect Yourself... Keep Yourself Hydrated By Drinking Plenty Of Non - Alcoholic Fluids. Wear Loose - Fitting... Light Colored Clothing. Try Not To Spend Too Much Time In The Sun And Avoid Over - Exertion
---
The opinions expressed above are for comparison purposes only. Your mileage may vary....
posted on August 9, 2001 06:12:50 AM
Not as bad as most of the country. I think we've hit mid 90's a couple of times in the last two weeks.
We have three seasons here in my little heaven in central WA: Fall, Winter, and August.
I only have one a/c and it's in my bedroom. I've used it maybe 7 days this year. I get up at 430 or 5am, work until it's too hot or sticky, go in the bedroom, watch soaps and sleep, then up at night and work again. Keep the doors and windows open w/screens all night and until it's hotter outside than in, then shut them 'til about 9pm when it cools again - it works pretty well.
posted on August 9, 2001 07:04:45 AM
Long Island, NY....Local power authority begging people to conserve, unfortunately, top of their list is to shut off a/c's, like THAT's gonna happen....Have minimized usage here, turned off all lights, extra pc's, fax machine, not running washer/dryer ANYTHING to avoid sitting in the middle of a power outage!...YUK!!!....
I am lucky enough not to work outside the home, so on days like this, we (me & the kids) don our bathing suits as the daily attire. We go in & out of the pool constantly to cool off. Yesterday, we gathered all our uninflated pool toys, pumped 'em up, covered (oh, and I do mean covered!) ourselves in sunblock and spent hours playing in the pool, water bottles within easy reach, ice pops for everyone, lunch served outside, dinner too!...Finished the day with another evening swim & then darted, nice & wet to our a/c'd bedrooms....AH....Survived another one!! Of course today, I've got an appointment at 1:30 and will be required to actually dress (AGH!) I reckon it's gonna take me bout an hour in the shower to get all this clorine outta my hair, but it was all worth it!...Our kids science experiment, scheduled for later this afternoon, is to crack an egg onto the blacktop road, to see if it will actually cook! Early morning news this morning reported one guy who actually cooked a steak on the dashboard of his closed up car. Did take 7 hours tho'.....
To me, heat waves are summer's blizzards....A time when life gets to slow down cause you're not expected to much more than survive. People come together sharing in the misery of the elements.
When ya feel like you can't take it anymore, grab a big bottle of water & remember what's comin:
~ Rancher
posted on August 9, 2001 08:09:29 AM
Thank you all for reminding me why I like living where I do. Its been barely up to 70 or 75 the last few days and today they are predicting 80 or so. Since I live in the north sound (Everett, WA), we will most likely barely reach 80 if that. Plenty warm enough for me.
This is the hotest is has been all summer, I do like this part of living in this area.
posted on August 9, 2001 08:27:06 AMcrankyoldhag, hubby & I almost moved up to the Seattle area a few years ago, but it didn't work out. (He lived on Mercer Island for the 3 months he was there.) Does it ever snow up there in the winter? Hubby told me it snows a little, but doesn't stay. Also, we will move out of this hot spot someday (as soon as we can if I have any say! ), is there an area in the Pacific NW that doesn't rain quite as much, but is still nice and green and cool? Thanks in advance!
posted on August 9, 2001 09:06:23 AM
Mouse, Our humidity is more like 55-95%. Think sauna. Today it's 84% (but only 81 degrees at 10 am which is nice). I wish for 30% in the damp season. Because of the humidity the winters also feel much colder.
Perhaps you don't need a heat index because of the low humidity?
posted on August 9, 2001 09:13:10 AM
There was a news feature on local T.V. here in South Florida two nights ago--"Tourists are saying that it is hot in Miami"--is it a revelation that it is hot in Miami in August??? To be honest it is in the 90's during the day and not all that humid. It has been much worse when it gets close to 100 and the humidity is high. It doesn't get any worse than that anywhere. I have been in Nevada when it is 110 and "dry" and it is not quite as bad.
posted on August 9, 2001 09:28:19 AM
I was asking Mom about the heat index (she's a native). She said they used to broadcast it here, but stopped. She thinks it's more because it's hot enough here already, and that the heat index can get ridiculously high if it's at all humid. Yes, most of the summer we run 10-20% humidity (Mom says it used to be like 7%!) But during mosoon season, which is mid-July to mid/late-August, we run more like 40-80% depending on how much rain we get. It rained quite a bit last night, so our humidity right now is 85%. Icky, sticky! At least it's only 77 degrees so far, but supposed to get up to 97 today. That's rather cool for us this time of year!
LOL! I just found a heat index chart and took a look, now I know why they don't broadcast it here! The dewpoint one says at a dewpoint of 65 degrees (which is about what we've been running) and a temp. of 105, the heat index is 112 (add 15 degrees in full sun)! Learn something new everyday.
We got lucky today, it was cloudy all day and it finally started raining at 1:30am. Of course my garage (eBay room) is flooding, but all of my eBay stuff is up! 
Hippy wannabe 
~^~
Learn something new everyday.