Imlebideli

The past few days have been so hot that it is hard to think, let alone write. Despite having central air at work and home, I’m utterly drained by the heat in the few moments that I’m forced to spend outside everyday, especially in the late afternoon, going from work to the car, and from the car into the house, and then back out for my second job.

The holiday weekend was completely unbearable. I don’t know how people survived if they were hanging around outside, or even if they were inside, but without fans or air conditioning.

I’m always amazed, though, at the number of people who refuse to use common sense in weather like this. Radio and television have been continually annoucing that the elderly, small children, and people with heart or respiratory problems should stay in cool places especially during the midday, but they don’t listen.

Some 25 to 30,000 people were out in the middle of the day on July 4th, when the heat index was over 100 degrees. Many of them were small children and babies, whose parents not only lacked the presence of mind to keep them out of the sun, they didn’t even have hats on their poor little hot heads. I find it mind-boggling that these people couldn’t find a way to enjoy their holiday inside, where they wouldn’t have put their children’s health at risk for recreation.

My friend Betty is the same way, though. She is 73, and she has heart problems. But she was out in someone’s backyard on the 4th, just because they invited her to a cookout and she felt it would’ve been rude to beg out. As far as I’m concerned, it would have been much ruder if the host had held it against her if she had chosen to stay home where it was cool. When I spoke to Betty today, she was still feeling worn out and fatigued, and wasn’t sure why.

The hospitals and the doctors will continue to love those whose stupidity in these heat waves makes them rich.

I’ll sit back in my air conditioning and and have another cold Pepsi, and leave running around in the heat for other, more foolhardy souls.