Everything is drying up....The temp is too damned high!

[Uben]

I live a little north of Dallas, so I'm no stranger to the Texas heat. Lived here my entire life, so I've seen some hot summers, but this one is brutal! It was 108 here yesterday and it's gonna be 102+ today. Trying to keep a lawn alive is becoming a job.
You can almost see the water level dropping in our lake. I refill the birdbaths several times a day as the birds enjoy having a spa next to their feed. I have sat and watched some birds spend up to five minutes just dipping themselves in the water to keep cool.
We have already had our yearly average of 100 degree days, and July is barely started. On average, we have about 16 days a year over 100 degrees. We're already there! Last month's water bill was $200.....I don't even wanna see the next one...much less my electric bill.
On top of all that, we're in one of the worst droughts on record and fires are an everyday event. We haven't had but one runoff rain since April. I remember 1980 when we had the longest run of 100 degree days on record and the most days over 100.

WE didn't have a/c when I was in school in the sixties and early seventies. There was one oscillating fan at the front of every room, and you can bet the teacher had it set to where he/she got a breeze. That would almost qualify for abuse these days! Ha!

I worked in the heat and cold all my life...from hauling hay as a teen, roofing houses in my twenties and as a machinist, I never worked in an air conditioned shop, except for one, where we were lucky if it kept the temp below 90 degrees.

So? TExas is always hot in the summer, big deal? This kind of heat is dangerous. I've seen a lot of people drop out because of it. We hear about kids and pets perishing in cars in a very short time.

A cool lemonade or iced tea in hand, looking out from an airconditioned home is nice, but the cost of that comfort is becoming increasingly hard to bear for most. The rich don't have to worry about heat, they can afford to keep their thermostats set at 70 degrees, but the rest of us have ours set at 80....or above!

I'm up at 4 AM so I can get some work done outside before that burning ball of fire in the sky comes up. Please keep your pets in mind if you are suffering this heat wave in the south. They need water...lots of it, and at least a shady place out of the sun.

[SpiralHawk]

1. "Thank you." - Winged Relatives

[RagAss]

2. This is a metaphor for America in 2011.

[mdmc]

3. thats how to do it..

get up early in the morn..

[Abq_Sarah]

4. The early 50's were the same

Horrible drought, nasty heat waves. Dallas damned near ran out of water.

[sammytko]

5. i'm in s. texas and it is hot!

I stay indoors during the heat of the day. We installed a new AC system a couple years ago and it has saved us at least 100 a month. I have it serviced twice a year to make sure it will keep on running efficiently.

My yard is still green because I maintain it year round - feed and water even during the winter. We are on water restrictions, so water only once a week.

I keep a deep fountain filled for the birds and squirrels. I check it daily but it never runs out. Its under a large pecan tree. Oh and have planted 4 more live oak trees for shade. Keep them well watered all year and they are growing like weeds.