Monday, August 2, 2021

A break from the heat

It has been a difficult summer.

It has been so achingly, bakingly hot for weeks on end. I don't do well in heat.

I'm eternally grateful to the people we bought this house from, because they left behind an air conditioner. We've been using it daily.

We haven't had an air conditioner in nearly 30 years. I grow weary of the din it makes and it fills me with guilt to use it (go figure), but it's made this summer tolerable and we thank God for it.

The heat has also put the kibosh on many of the outdoor projects we'd hoped to accomplish this summer. If readers wonder why I haven't posted more DIY projects posts, that's why. We have to keep reminding ourselves to be patient.

But this week we anticipated a break in the weather.

Rain! A chance at rain!

As the heat continued (that 107F temp took place last Friday), we monitored the weather like crazy people, praying we would get some of this celestial largess.

Older Daughter came up for a visit on Saturday, and that evening we took Mr. Darcy for a walk after sunset. It was hot, smoky (from wildfires), and insanely humid. Except for the smoke, Older Daughter said it reminded her of the sauna-like summers in New Jersey, where she worked for four years as a nanny.

Sunday morning dawned, if anything, even more humid. We don't normally get humidity like this. The west is known for its dry heat, not its humid heat.

Sunday's weather report kept teasing us with imminent moisture....

....and then backing down. Storms cells kept dodging around us. It wasn't until late afternoon that we hit the jackpot. And what a jackpot it was!

Don and I sat out on the deck and just reveled in the sounds and smells of the rain. The temperatures also dropped into the high 70s. We were able to turn off the air conditioner and open up the house.

Here's roof runoff coming out of the gutter downspout.

We had what I call a "string of pearls" – a line of individual storm cells passing over. The first one passed, leaving puddles in the driveway....

...and then another one headed our way. We leashed up Mr. Darcy, took umbrellas, and walked him in the pounding rain. It was lovely.

Even better, we learned a nearby wildfire got over an inch of rain dumped on it. Woot!

This morning it's still very humid, and unsurprisingly we had fog everywhere.

During our morning walk, Mr. Darcy left footprints on the gravel road.

The roadside grasses were still bent over from the deluge...

...and all the plants looked newly washed and grateful.

Even the funnel spider webs looked cleaner.

Mr. Darcy took advantage of puddles, because of course water in road puddles tastes so much better than the clean fresh water in his bowl at home.

We have a few more hot days ahead of us, and then temps are slated to drop into the 70s.

At last.

10 comments:

  1. We have had about an hour of a nice steady rain here in Utah, so grateful for it.

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  2. So glad to see that you had rain....I've been praying for rain for friends in Montana and Wyoming too to be able to get rain....My friends in NW Montana got rain too....We get rain a lot here in NC area I live in...Wish rain could drop out West more often.
    Love from NC,
    Sandy

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  3. We have had a day of rain here as well. It is a very nice break from the heat.

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  4. We have had an unusual summer this year. In NE Texas we have only had 2 100 degree days and most of the time it has been in the low 90's. It was also unusually wet. It is now going to be in the upper 90's and most of August is supposed to be higher than average, but at least after Aug. 8th the average starts going down.

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  5. Glad to hear that you and Don received the rain you were praying for. Here in the South Eastern part of Arizona we are drowning ! Two mud slides into the pool rendering it useless for the remainder of the summer, family room flooded twice and the weeds have grown up to my chest . I'm not complaining as we so badly needed the rain after a few yrs of drought . The second good thing is that the rain has kept down the heat, summers usually bring temps around 100 or a bit higher , this year the temps are in the hi 70's to low 80's.

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  6. Here in the notoriously steamy, sultry South, thunder and torrential rain almost every afternoon, all summer long, so far! By morning, lawns, all manner of weeds, various thorny vines, and many un-familiars have shot up a foot or so.

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  7. You're lucky. I've been praying for rain. I work 15 minutes away and it's got rain half a dozen times and I got nothing. I keep hoping and praying.

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  8. Plenty of rain here in the triad of NC.

    On the air conditioning situation, I didn't have air conditioning til I was 18 years old at home. Came home from school that summer and there was a window unit in my bedroom. Thought I had died and gone to the big cooler in the sky.

    Didn't have air conditioning in the dorms I lived in for 3 years down east. Finally worked enough jobs to get an apartment my senior year.

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    1. Hello, fellow triad nc-er!! Yes we've had a wonderful summer, not horrible heat and humidity like usual. Best garden yields in years. Still. ...keep prepping for the winter shortages ahead. Just finished the new book, Patrice. Loved it.

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