Heat avoidance

Ok, it's hot! The Weather Network says it's currently only 30 degrees, but it feels like 39. For my American friends, that's 102.2. I'd say that's pretty hot.

For the most part, we haven't minded the fact that our apartment lacks air conditioning but the past couple of days have been a little more challenging to deal with.

Yesterday to beat the heat we decided to spend the afternoon at the beach. So we (Darren, Ashley, Chuck and I) gathered our towels, musty though some of them were, and headed to Port Dalhousie.

I had always thought that Lake Ontario was off limits in terms of swimming, but a few weekends ago we met our friends there after they and their little boys had swum in the lake. Darren noticed a sign that day that said the water was safe, so when we heard the weather forcast for yestarday, we thought this to be the best option. (Now, the very idea of needing a sign to indicate that one won't be harmed by entering a body of water should cause one to think, but we took it as a go-ahead.)

This time, however, the sign had been changed. It now reads that the water is not safe for swimming, due to high bacteria levels. Our reaction involved throwing caution somewhat to the wind and entering to upper-thigh level. It was a fun little outing despite the fact that no one in Port sells frisbees and we couldn't get our heads wet.

Back at our apartment, the sun had moved far enough to the west that I was able to nap with a fan blowing directly on me while the boys fought each other on the Dreamcast. The evening's survival tactic involved going to the movie theatre, sweater in tow. (What irony, eh?)

This morning the temperature in our apartment was perfect! Laying in bed I was wishing the church we're currently attending had an afternoon service so we could enjoy the coolness of the morning at home and avoid the heat of the day in the air conditioned building. But alas, we missed the morning weather as we headed to church just before 10am.

And now the next question: what do we do this afternoon to survive until the temperature drops this evening? The library is closed on Sundays, we've already been the the mall once this weekend (Monster House was better than both Superman and Pirates II, by the way) and most other cool places expect visitors to leave some money behind when they're done there. Perhaps it'll be another sitting by the fan day.

But I know that it's only temporary; the daytime heat doesn't last forever. I got a little teary-eyed this morning with thankfulness when we sang the following lyrics:

Who imagined the sun and gives source to its light
Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night

Despite my complaining about the weather and entering into "survival mode," I much prefer the summer to the winter, especially since it's so short. And as long as the evenings allow for sufficient sleep, I'm happy to deal with being a little less energetic while the sun is out.