Local Warming
The image above is a screenshot taken from my iPhone's weather app at approximately 11 AM Pacific Time. Over two and a half hours later at 1:30 PM, the app says it's 92. At around 9 AM when I first checked it, the temperature was 72. If this keeps up, we'll hit the 98 scheduled high and then some.
As you can see from the forecast for the next six days, the temps are expected to get into the low or upper 90s, too.
It's only the early part of July, people. Having such a long span of heat does not happen here often. Usually, there will be a few days of it, followed by a two or three day cooling off period, and then it will gradually build back up again.
In reality, the 90s is more of what we see in August. If we're getting this kind of weather now, does that mean we'll be into the 100s for most of next month? That's not unheard of by the way. We can touch 100 a time or two in a summer, but not for most of a month.
You'll notice along with the highs where the lows get overnight. It's not uncommon for us to have 40 degree or more temperature changes throughout the year. The summer time, though, is when it tends to happen the most.
Meanwhile Out On The Coast
This is what the forecast looks like about 50 miles away as the crow flies. This is on the Oregon Coast, where the temperatures rarely get above the mid-70s, and that's not very often. Sunday looks like it might get out of the 60s. It was supposed to do that a day or two in June, too, but the forecast got revised.
Looks like we might want to make a trip out that way, especially if it's going to be sunny. Fog or cloud cover generally accounts for the lack of warmer weather there. This time, it might be wind.
It's Hot All Over
Some of you have already been experiencing heatwaves into the hundreds, so I'm not complaining. I actually enjoy warmer and sunnier weather than I do the wet, cold and dreary. I can come in and out of it as much as I can take of the sun and heat. I'd rather not be out in the wet and cold for any longer than I have to.
And yes, most homes come equipped with air conditioning here, so we can keep cool if we want the added electricity costs. So far this summer the bills have been reasonable, but this is the first time we've not been able to cool the house off from opening the sliding door in the morning. I'm afraid it's going to be that way for a while, even after it dips back down into the upper 80s.
Burning Them Vegetables
In the meantime, there's the garden to be concerned about, and to a lesser extent (at least for me), the lawn and the flowers. We've got sprinklers set up on the grass and the garden. I might have to up the morning and evening dosages a little bit to get them through the heat of the day.
I think the plants have been doing really well in the upper 70s lower 80s weather we've been having. I'm not sure what they're going to look like on the other end of this heat spell. Maybe the hot peppers will come on more?
The Grass Is Definitely Not Greener
Meanwhile, our grass has seen better days. This probably doesn't seem too bad colorwise to some of you (maybe you don't have grass at all) but we're used to seeing more green, even during the summer months. And the heat is just beginning.
The Large Blue Donut
I guess you do what you got to do to make it through the hot days. We bought a pool, primarily for the granddaughter to get acclimated to, but after an hour or so of enjoying herself the first time, she's not wanted to get into it since. We've had to move it twice for one reason or another after setting it up two weeks ago. Hopefully, it'll stay there and someone will actually get in it.
Somehow, the small cactus plant next to the pool seems totally appropriate now.
About This Post
Screenshots of the weather are from the iPhone weather app. The rest of the images were taken by Glen Anthony Albrethsen on an iPhone 6s.
What's the weather like where you're at, and what's the forecast? What do you do to keep cool?