It’s Hotter Than #$@* Out Here!

Some Things are Not Meant to be Hot

How to Stay Cool In Summer Months

Potatoes should be hot, chicken pot pie should be hot, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts should definitely be hot (There’s an app for that!).  Human beings are not meant to be hot!  I really want my family to camp with me, but if going into it, I told them it was going to be hotter than #@$@ out there, I would get a big ole’ “nope”.   I mean seriously, who likes to be hot?  As I am always saying,

You can put layers on to get warm, but you can be butt nekkid and still be hot!

This was tested while we were living in Germany 1992.  It was August, it was hot, humid and we were living in the attic of a non-air-conditioned apartment building.  I stripped down to my skivvies and walked around the apartment like this all month and as a result we have this kid.

It’s Hot and Humid in Georgia, Y’all!

Did I mention it is hot?  There is no way of avoiding it.  If you do not live in the southern part of the United States you have NO IDEA how hot and sticky it gets. We have two seasons here.  “Warm-ish” from October until March and “Get behind me Satan” hot from April until September!  I swear the devil himself has us by the big toe and is pulling us straight into the fiery pits of Hades.  Summer usually means the thermometer will push 98F/36C.  But the temperature isn’t the only bothersome issue. Humidity: oh how I loathe you!  Imagine living in a sauna. That is what it is like for us in the deep south.  By the time August gets here there is no point in styling my hair every morning because I walk outside and the humidity immediately styles it like a French poodle.  Shane really hates the humidity.  He can not stand feeling sticky.   When he was a small boy, his mother used to have to sprinkle baby powder on his hands and arms to stop him from complaining.  Today he just sits there quietly, brooding over how hot he is.

So How Do You Stay Cool?

I have read blogs from people camping all over the world and even if you don’t have high humidity, the heat gets to people.  The dry heat, un-shaded climate in Nevada, New Mexico isn’t fun either.

Cool down ideas:

• Swimming in the lake or pool or splashing in a stream
• Cave exploring
• Kayaking
• Venture into a small town for some shopping.
• Grab an ice cream at a local shop.
• Have lunch or dinner at a local grub hub (restaurant)
• Showers: Thank goodness for showers because it does immediately cool you off and get you ready for sleeping.  Your hot body inside a tent will make for a miserable sleeping arrangement.  So take a shower before heading off to slumber.
• Take a wanderlust trip:  Taking a look-see drive in your car to cool off is my favorite!  I love to get in a vehicle and pick a direction and go.  Have no direction just drive.  You find the neatest shots of cool things by just taking a back county road.

I snapped this photo of a old farmhouse and windmill from the side of the road that we were exploring. My girls hate it when I turn around for these kind of photos but I don’t care! It makes me happy and Shane is more tolerant, so he indulges me and stops for a snapshot. The best when I am thumbing through photos and one of these gems pops up.

So if you see something neat, stop!  If you see a sign that says, “Natural Bridge” in Virginia.  Get off and go see it! *Ahem* (jab at my sister, Tracy.)

So how do you stay cool while camping during the sweltering summer heat?  Let me know in the comments below!

Keep the Lust for Wandering Y’all!

Fran