My roommate and I agreed that I would be staying on the side of the bed that's by the window. The only window in the room. He's not the kind to enjoy cool weather, so I gladly chose that spot because I could sleep almost naked even in the north pole. My mother definitely brings that up whenever I come close to catching a cold.
How we went from that to the oven we'd call our room these days is the calculus I have been trying to solve for three decades now. Who is that comrade who swapped Earth's and Mercury's positions exactly?
Olujay never really breaks a sweat, as most people would in regular physical activities. To find myself sweating like I just came out of a swimming pool in these recent times has had him puzzled. Who else feels this heat wave? He can't be the only one, surely.
They say it's because our ozone layer is now as thin as crackers biscuit, but I feel like someone must have committed a sin and is rather the cause.
Am I ranting? No. Yes. Maybe. Maybe not. Whatever it may be, I'd like to think that I am speaking from the same point of view as many Africans today.
You see, there's this level of heat we're experiencing now. It's usually warm and sometimes hot in Nigeria on most days, but what's happening now is rather unusual.
Harmattan usually happens between November and January. Sometimes, it lasts into February and rarely gets into March. It gets very dry during this season. It gets really cold, too, especially at the beginning of the season. What follows is a dry season where there may not be rain for weeks, and then the first rain may happen in March or thereabouts.
Owing to the fact that there would be no rain for so long, it contributed to the increase in heat during this period of the year. But I don't remember it being this intense.
I've heard several times that the intense heat we're experiencing is caused by the ozone layer's depletion. I learned about it from a commercial interrupting a cartoon show I was watching one time as a kid. The illustrations were apt, so remember some of the explanations now. But it was recently that I learned better about it from a knowledgeable friend.
Essentially, there are carbon emissions that are released into the atmosphere, and they contain certain gases that trap heat in the Earth's atmosphere. This contributes to global warming.
And as the Earth warms, it affects weather patterns and causes climate changes, including frequent and intense heat waves.
The ozone layer protects us from UV light. But the carbon emissions from our everyday activities make it get thinner by the day.
One remedy I learned to help the ozone layer and our situation with the heat these days is to plant trees. Apparently, plants take in carbon and give out oxygen. It's a cycle between humans and plants where we exchange during respiration. Rather than go into the atmosphere, the carbon would be taken by the plants. So the more plants, the less heat we experience so frequently.
Three times a day is how often I take showers these days. I stay out very late at night to take in some cool air and so I can sleep. And when it's time to sleep, lay a blanket on the ground and sleep on the floor, as it would be cooler than my bed. Also, my small battery-powered fan has been so useful these days.
Hopefully, these hot times will pass and the rainy season will bring some cool air. Meanwhile, I wonder what the weather is like for you these days.