How to deal with extreme heat (dedicated to Searcher 08)

[AlicetheKurious]

Including politically correct & politically incorrect methods:

1) If you have an air-conditioner, turn it ON;

2) If you have a fan, turn it ON -- preferably with a wet washcloth on your head or fill a spray bottle with water and keep spritzing yourself;

3) If you have a bathtub, fill it with lukewarm water, bring a book & soak until you have mild hypothermia (at least an hour) -- you'll remain cool for hours after you get out of the tub;

4) If you're not at work, find somewhere to swim, whether a public pool, a lake, or wrack your brain for someone you know who has a swimming pool and propose a long-overdue visit (offer to bring over beer, barbecue stuff or whatever);

5) Go to a movie or a mall, supermarket (frozen foods section) or anywhere else that is air-conditioned;

6) Get out of town -- that's what I'm doing, starting tomorrow. See you all in a couple of weeks!

[freemason9]

That, or beer.

[Penguin]

That, or beer.

Perfect recipe for severe dehydration!

=)

[LolaB]

Or step into a cold shower with clothes on, cotton is best. Then drip dry or wait for the body heat to evaporate the water from your clothes. Instant air condition.
Wrapping a cold, wet cloth around your head and neck also works, or running cold water over your wrist pulses. If you're outside you must have a hat, the lighter and more wide brimmed, the better.
Also: frozen water bottles with a few added, cooling extras: cucumber slices, lemon, lime wedges, sprigs of fresh mint.
=)

[freemason9]

That, or beer.

Perfect recipe for severe dehydration!

=)

But I remember throwing around hay bales in the fields, under the brilliant summer sun, tossing back cold ones in somewhat rapid sequence. I think it helped.

But what the hell do I know?

[freemason9]

Or step into a cold shower with clothes on, cotton is best. Then drip dry or wait for the body heat to evaporate the water from your clothes. Instant air condition.
Wrapping a cold, wet cloth around your head and neck also works, or running cold water over your wrist pulses. If you're outside you must have a hat, the lighter and more wide brimmed, the better.
Also: frozen water bottles with a few added, cooling extras: cucumber slices, lemon, lime wedges, sprigs of fresh mint.
=)

Or get naked and stand in front of a fan. Or an open window, depending upon your location.

[OP ED]

or you could just move somewhere that it only gets hot very rarely.

70s [F] here today. i've never seen it top 102, and that is for like one or two days every couple years.

of course, michigan weather is unpredictable. it might snow tomorrow. so you win some and you lose some i guess.

i never really minded the extreme heat, i just hate the soaking humidity. wreaks havoc on my senses.

[freemason9]

or you could just move somewhere that it only gets hot very rarely.

70s [F] here today. i've never seen it top 102, and that is for like one or two days every couple years.

of course, michigan weather is unpredictable. it might snow tomorrow. so you win some and you lose some i guess.

i never really minded the extreme heat, i just hate the soaking humidity. wreaks havoc on my senses.

Snows like a bitch up there, I hear. What's the prettiest part of Michigan, in your estimation?

[OP ED]

i like the city, personally i find the gothic decay gorgeous in a post-apocalyptic sort of way.

but really, the farther north you go, the less the nature has been destroyed. the U.P. is nearly untouched in many places.

"lake effect" snow, yes. not so much this last few years, but every so often it just dumps an enormous amount of powder.

[lightningBugout]

OE have you done much climbing around in the various ruins, tunnels, storm drains of Detroit? I will be out there in late fall and want to find a guide.

[OP ED]

a bit.

i know an old asylum in the south western burbs which is particularly chilling. the tunnels running under the property are, IMO, one of the very few places i've spent time that is most certainly "haunted".

[although what they're being haunted by is open to interpretation]

[lightningBugout]

its a date.

[Penguin]

But I remember throwing around hay bales in the fields, under the brilliant summer sun, tossing back cold ones in somewhat rapid sequence. I think it helped.

But what the hell do I know?

If they had more than 3-4% alcohol, then after the first one, the rest will cause you to pee more than you keep in due to the alcohol.

Dehydration is a possibility if you drink only beer and hang out in the hot.

Ive drank ten score beers while in the sauna too and all I got was drunk.

[freemason9]

But I remember throwing around hay bales in the fields, under the brilliant summer sun, tossing back cold ones in somewhat rapid sequence. I think it helped.

But what the hell do I know?

If they had more than 3-4% alcohol, then after the first one, the rest will cause you to pee more than you keep in due to the alcohol.

Dehydration is a possibility if you drink only beer and hang out in the hot.

Ive drank ten score beers while in the sauna too and all I got was drunk.

Hey, you know what they say about light beer? It's for people that dislike beer, but enjoy peeing. I don't know why I mention it, but it seemed to fit. Perhaps, even, urination lowers the body temperature. Hmmm.

[annie aronburg]

2) If you have a fan, turn it ON -- preferably with a wet washcloth on your head or fill a spray bottle with water and keep spritzing yourself;

3) If you have a bathtub, fill it with lukewarm water, bring a book & soak until you have mild hypothermia (at least an hour) -- you'll remain cool for hours after you get out of the tub;

This thread's ready for a bump.

I keep a glass spray bottle filled with witch hazel, distilled water and a few drops of mild essential oils in the fridge for spritzing throughout the day. This is also essential in the cooler during long hot drives in the summer for quick refreshment.

I leave the bathtub continuously filled with cool water to take brief dips after I have been outside. I have long hair that I dip in the tub and wrap up into a wet bun on my head. This cools as the water dries and as a bonus when it's dry, I have wavy hair!

If I have to work outside, a large straw hat and an extra large men's cotton dress shirt dipped in water are essential garb to keep from wilting.

Showing skin won't keep you cool, you're better off in long white pants and sleeves in a light natural fibre, than short shorts and no shirt (I 'm looking at you, Australia.) Cotton madras and seersucker, silk and linen are your allies. Avoid knits and switch to wovens.
Embrace the Muu-Muu.