Extreme Weather: Staying Cool

By Julie McCay Turner

The Citizen urges its readers to keep cool as best as they are able, and offers some suggestions.

What are you doing to stay cool? Do you have ideas to share?

The obvious suggestions:

• Plan errands for early in the morning or late in the afternoon to avoid mid-day heat
• Dress simply in loose-fitting clothes
• Stay hydrated: Drink water flavored with mint sprigs, lemon slices or basil leaves instead of caffeinated beverages, carbonated soda or alcohol
• Eat lightly and enjoy summer’s fresh produce that can often be eaten without cooking
• Open the house to the evening’s cooler temperatures, then close it up (and pull the shades/draw the drapes) before the sun come up
• Fill a pet’s water bowl with ice cubes
• Check on neighbors and friends who might need assistance

For fun:

• Freeze fruit juice to enjoy either as slush or as a frozen treat
• Remove grapes from the bunch, then freeze in a single layer on an aluminum pie plate lined with a paper towel
• Run through the sprinklers, or run cool water over your wrists for a minute or two
• Get lost in the book you’ve been meaning to read
• Create an impromptu bird bath: leave a shallow bowl of water in the shade
• Visit Springs Brook Park for a swim or a picnic

Chill out:

• Home-made ice packs are simpler than you might think; click here to learn how, then wrap in a dishtowel to cool the back of your neck, or your bare feet
• Freeze damp washcloths and use them to cool your forehead
• For a cool night’s sleep, fill a hot water bottle with ice water
• If  the cellar is cool, a hot day is a perfect day for cleaning it
• Visit air-conditioned public buildings: The Bedford Library is open until 6 o’clock this evening

And remember today when the snow flies this winter!