We don't have A/C in our house. We have a wall of heat to sit in with a few fans to blow it around. If you sit absolutely still and don't even turn a page of a magazine, you won't sweat. Otherwise, all bets are off. Right now I am just a wet, soppy mess. I would take my shirt off, but I don't have the energy. The heat sucks that right out of you, in a straw. I have a straw attached to the top of my head and the heat monster is sucking me dry. I swear, I can't drink enough, I am constantly thirsty.
Anyway, my first tip is to leave your hot, humid house and get into your car with the A/C cranked. It is like heaven. I swear, I instantly perked up the moment I drove away. Also, you should remove the wet mass of hair that is sticking to your neck and put it up. It makes a huge difference (as does removing all unnecessary clothing!) I have a jeep, which I exclusively use when it is sunny out. You do NOT travel in a convertible when it is pushing 100 degrees out. It is wrong, you need cover and freezing cold air on you. My first tip includes the caveat of driving in a car that is ENCLOSED with A/C -- just in case this isn't blatantly obvious!
I drove and drove, but the moment I stepped out of the car the wall came crashing into me again. The wall of impenetrable heat that is. My sister and I went to lunch, all the while thinking we might still go to the beach. But as we ate in an air conditioned restaurant, we decided that pedicures in air conditioning sounded so much more humane!
So that is tip number 2. Go have a pedicure! It takes a nice amount of time, you can chat, and your toes look marvelous at the end.
Then go to visit people you know who have air conditioning. In this event, my parents were in the vicinity, so we nixed the beach (we contemplated it whilst riding around in a cool car, but every time we opened the door to get out, we would gasp and shriek WE CAN'T GO TO THE BEACH) and hung out with them, and waited for the sun to set. That brought about a 15 degree drop in temperature -- and when we walked outside we didn't actually gasp, but said, oh, this isn't THAT bad. I drove home in utter comfort and walked into the inferno. Despite at least a 20 degree difference in outside temperature, the house had latched on to all that heat and was holding on for all it was worth. This is a lovely feature in the winter. Not so much in the summer!
On day 2 of our heat wave, and let me tell you, when you wake up and it is as hot out as it was the day before, you know it's going to be HOT, I had a dentist appointment. I had considered canceling it earlier in the week, because it is an hour's drive south and who wants to go to the dentist in July? Well, in a heat wave it is a luxury! You get to relax in a comfy chair and the A/C blows and blows your troubles away. So, I woke up, showered quickly, ran to car and turned on A/C, drove an hour, rushed into dentist office and relaxed. Not too bad. Then Maddie and I went to lunch, in A/C of course, and then we went to the movies. Where I FROZE.
Seriously. I forgot to grab my sweatshirt when I went in -- because the movies are always cold -- but there is something about remembering a sweatshirt when you open up your car door and that wall of heat hits you. You just don't. So I had to wrap my freezing cold arms up in my pocketbook to survive! And then of course went out to hot car and swore as it took its time cooling down!
It's a constant dance, this trying to keep cool. How many hundreds of miles do you want to put on your car during a heat wave? Me, I have no qualms, cheaper than cooling my whole house! But utilizing public spots such as I've mentioned above is really your best bet.
You can also go to the lake if you have access, which I do. But here is the thing. I feel it is TOO HOT to do that! Because then you have to return to this hellishly hot house anyway and you just sweat again.
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