You Du'ers that live in the hot states where it's hot 8 months out of the year (or more), how do you

[raccoon]

stand it?

This is a sort of copycat thread--not too long ago someone posted something similar about cold states.
But I am asking seriously.

I suspect some of you are thinking, what is this about? IIRC, the OP lives in one of the hot states (and I do). Don't guess I'll ever get out, either, at my age.

How do I stand it? I stay in most all the time in the really hot months.

[barbtries]

1. i live in NC

and am from CA. the summers are extremely difficult for me. it is so sweaty. so, so sweaty. in fact i don't actually call it summer, i call it SWEAT. i don't think i'll ever get used to it. and i do the same you do, stay indoors most all the time.

[dixiegrrrrl]

9. "Horses sweat, men perspire and women..glisten"

as the old saying goes down here.

[barbtries]

21. lol

i glisten til i cry!

[Egalitarian Thug]

34. or 'glow'. n/t

[braddy]

57. That was great, will try to remember that.

[Butterbean]

64. Me too. I'm just sort of used to it I guess. I get cold when it drops below 72.

[barbtries]

66. i revel

when it hits the 60s. back in CA when i was young i thought 60 was cold. the difference is my age, the humidity, and i am very overweight since i moved here. a sedentary job and bo jangles.

[Butterbean]

69. Ah, Boberry Biscuits will getcha. ;) I'm a nurse and have 2 active kids

who are constantly outside, no matter the weather, so I have been forced to adjust. The summers and heat used to kill me before the kids, now not so much. Chasing them around the park for 2 hours in 90 degree heat helps you build up a tolerance. LOL.

[Ohio Joe]

2. I use a swamp cooler

Works great, I love it.

[renie408]

3. Deep South my whole life AND I work outside. My strategy? I sweat.

[sofa king]

13. Not-so-deep South and I do the same.

But when October comes around, I start counting down from six months. That's when I'll be warm again... during the daytime.

I say this to all of my friends, but none of them believe it: If one counts everything below 60 degrees as "cold," as I do, it's wintertime in Virginia for nine fucking months of every year at night.

You try riding a moped 35 miles at a stretch in the middle of the night and see if I'm wrong while you're dealing with hypothermia in May. Ask the thousands of homeless Virginians if the heat is their problem. It ain't. Their problem is where to hide their winter jackets during the daytime.

[DUFan]

4. The same here -

I don't do much outside from June-September. The heat and rain is too much for me. But I love the remaining months and get out nearly every day for walks.

[Marrah_G]

5. I could never live in a southern or midwestern state

In fact Mass is getting to hot for me!

[Aerows]

6. I live on the Gulf Coast

It gets so hot here, that it feels like you are breathing soup with the humidity in the summer. When it hits over 100, and there is humidity in the upper 80%, ugh....

[renie408]

18. "It's not the heat, it's the humidity."

Bingo. I tolerate it better than most, but there are days when you feel like you are trying to breathe underwater....THOSE are the hard days.

[hughee99]

24. I never really appreciated that statement until i went to Vegas one September,

where it was every bit as hot as other places (Alabama in the summer comes to mind) but there was almost no humidity and the heat didn't bother me nearly so much.

[Aerows]

38. I went outside to go to lunch one day

Opened the car door, and realized that nothing under the sun, even hunger, was going to provoke me to get boiled to death at work by getting into the car. I kept a jar of peanut butter around just for that occasion. You'd be surprised how many people also availed themselves to it for lunch once we got some bread in the office.

[byeya]

7. I now live in North Carolina. I moved from the mountains of VA

where it seldom got to 90F and almost no one had air conditioning.

I can't stand the heat down here: It starts at dawn and continues into the dark hours.

I jog no later than 9AM and have fallen in love with
central air conditioning. I cannot stand feeling hot and greasy so I stay in as much as possible.

[mainer]

8. In the cold states, we can enjoy winter AND summer sports.

Here in Maine, you can be outdoors all year long. You just wear different clothes for winter and summer.

In the hot states, there are some months you can't go outside at all.

[Aerows]

39. You can suffocate in the Deep South 4 months out of the year

If you are into that sort of thing.

"Olympic suffocation, because you are breathing soup and have a heat stroke due to ten minutes outside. Come to the Coast of the Gulf of Mexico if you prefer to be stewed rather than shaken, like you would on the California coast, or chilled, like you would in New England!"

One day, I'm going to experience being chilled, and believe me, *I* will appreciate it.

[TBF]

10. Are you kidding? I love it!

My sole goal growing up in Wisconsin was to move somewhere warm. The only thing that could possibly be better would be a drier climate (I am in Texas near the Gulf so it's very humid) in a state with more politically progressive views (or another country that is warm, dry, and progressive).

I have to admit when it's over 100 degrees the dogs and I have to do our long walks at dawn and dusk.

[Wwagsthedog]

11. Been in TX for the better part of 50 years

Gotten used to it as far as the weather is concerned but not the politics of course. Don't let the heat get in the way of enjoying life. All of my grandchildren are nearby and I see them and my daughters frequently. Can't really complain too much.

[RockaFowler]

12. We have the ocean and swimming pools

I can't stand the cold. So I love it when we can swim in our pool 8 months out of the year. And really there are maybe 2 months tops that we have to worry about a cold snap here in Florida. I just go inside and start up the fireplace. Yes I have a fireplace in Florida!!

[RebelOne]

19. When I was a kid, I lived in Miami Springs, FL.,

and we had a fireplace which got good use in the few cold days.

[Aerows]

45. Low Humidity

That's why it gets chilly.

Certain interior regions of the US? Oh no. It's the damn swamps. You can't escape the humidity which contributes to heat, which contributes to the humidity.

[Aerows]

44. Florida weather

Is better than interior Deep South weather. I lived there for 7 years. You have humidity, but you don't have suffocating humidity like you do in say, Mississippi or Louisiana. Southern Florida is a dream if you've lived in an ultra-high humidity place like that.

[dixiegrrrrl]

14. I have lived in several climates.

Temperate, but rainy and cloudy.
Dry and hot, desert.
and now here, in the humid hot south.
Hot dry is so much easier to bear than hot humid, IMO.

As I age, my bones and joints hate both humid dry and humid cold.
My secret is I stay in AND use a box fan, while keeping the house A/c at 78.
Keeping the air moving is important.
Can't afford to run A/c more than that.
PLUS I invested in a window A/C unit for my bedroom, which made it possible, after all these years, to sleep well at night in the summer ( summer being from April to frost in Dec, of late)
THAT made a huge difference in comfort, and I often fire it up and let a box fan blow the cool air into the den here, closing off the rest of the house during the day. Thus I have lower A/C bill in the hottest of the season.

I try to run errands before 10 am, ( as most people do here) and if needed, when I come home, I take a cool shower and put on fresh clothes.

[GoCubsGo]

26. Yep. I'll take August in Phoenix over any summer day here in SC.

Hot, humid weather makes me swell up like a balloon. I really have to watch my sodium intake, which is hard, since I also sweat buckets. That makes me crave salt. I don't have that problem when I'm in Arizona. And, believe it or not, it's a lot easier to stay cool in the desert than it is in the humid South. Here, the sweat just sits on you, rather than evaporating off and taking the heat with it, like it does in the desert. I have had goose bumps at 108F in Arizona, after getting out of a pool on a windy day. The only time that happens during a South Carolina summer is when I'm in sweat-soaked clothing while sitting for a while in an excessively air-conditioned room or vehicle.

Ceiling fans also help cool things down. I can't sleep during the summer without the one in my bedroom running.

I also refuse to cut down any of the trees in my yard, as many of the people in this neighborhood have. I don't care if I have to rake, or that my backyard is pine needles instead of grass. I'd rather have the shade.

[Aerows]

46. I don't mean to offer a non sequitur

but have you thought of taking vitamin D supplements? I'm not trying to offer medical advice, but those are classic signs of lack of vitamin D. It's assumed we can get it from the sun, but if you are running on a low fat diet, you don't have enough oloesters to synthesize it, and spending time in the sun is meaningless.

[DesertFlower]

81. most of my family live in S.C.

they moved there in '79. i've been there in the summer -- 100 degrees and 100 percent humidity. i've also been there in the winter. had to wear a heavy coat.

since my husband passed 3-1/2 months ago my sister is bugging me to move to S.C. i said "no way". my granddaughter wants me in west palm beach, fla. no way. hurricanes, mosquitoes, floods, humidity.

i'm staying in phoenix.

[Taverner]

15. Air Conditioning, less clothing, terrycloth blankets and margaritas

[deathrind]

16. Here in Az.

When i used to work for an airline outside it involved drinking lots of water and staying in the shade whenever possible or in the aircraft hold plus i was much younger. Now that i work inside it is A/C or close to a pool or lake from April-October. All outdoor work is done ealry AM. I used to laugh at the "dry heat" comment until I spent a summer in Mi. I feel for folks back there in that area they get slammed all year long. I can take 115 degree heat because our winters rock but 100 degree heat w/ 90%a humidity is just horrid and after that comes feet upon feet of snow... rough stuff.

[RebelOne]

17. I live in North Georgia and I think we have the best of weather.

It is only hot about 3-4 months of the year. We have seasons. Fall, winter and spring. I lived in South Florida where it was summer all year round. Maybe there were a few cold days during the winter, but the rest of the year I lived in air conditioning.

[Aerows]

47. Atlanta

Gets snow and sunshine, and four seasons out of the year. You guys have it best

[RebelOne]

58. Yes, that is why I love it here.

Before I moved to Atlanta, I lived in South Florida most of my life and did not realize that other areas had actual seasons.

[Aerows]

59. I love Atlanta

I've been there twice during winter, and both times it snowed (lightly). It was like a gift to a child of the Gulf Coast like me. Just beautiful. And I'm not going to discuss your restaurants, because they are some of the best in the nation, good God. Oh wait, I just did.

EDIT: And peaches and nectarines are my favorite fruit. People in Atlanta have NO IDEA how good they have it with the fresh fruit they have on hand

[Tikki]

20. Some find the lack of weather extremes boring..we love our moderate weather..

Last edited Mon Sep 17, 2012, 05:54 PM - Edit history (1)

Utility bills super low, traveling is easy and outdoor activities are year around.



Tikki

[gkhouston]

22. You get used it. Seriously.

You also drink a lot of fluids and don't over-exert yourself outdoors in the middle of the day. It helps to keep your thermostat fairly high, say 78-80 degrees. If you keep it too cool in the house, the change between indoors and outdoors will make you feel half-sick.

[superpatriotman]

23. AC, shorts, t-shirts, loafers

A swimming pool, cold beer, etc.

[Aerows]

48. More cold beer

Ice to chill the beer, still suffocating in our "go-to-work-clothes" during the summer.

[mitchtv]

25. solar panels to begin with

swimming pool, one article of clothing-shorts. stay inside. I live near Palm Springs in what we call the low desert

[HockeyMom]

27. New Yorker of 58 years, now in South Florida

I hate it, stay INSIDE with AC as cold as possible, and go back to NY as much as possible in the FALL and WINTER. I would rather have a blizzard than 90+ degrees and endless SUN!

I did not move here because of the weather. When I tell my snowbird neighbors all this, they look at me like I am out of my mind.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

74. You're not out of your mind...

at least I don't think so. I'm in NC, and have trips planned to see friends and family in CT/NY/PA during the fall and winter months. I can't stand that October is hot down here, and sometimes November. Ugh. It poured yesterday morning and I was THRILLED... endless sun is depressing!

[Surya Gayatri]

28. I live in temperate Paris, with its maritime climate.

Except for office buildings and shops, residential air conditioning is almost non-existent, even in the city center.

No need for most of the year. Only a few days in the summer above 70-75°.

The south of France is another case entirely. I'll take cold over heat everytime.

[PavePusher]

51. Paris? "maritime climate"? Huh? n/t

[Surya Gayatri]

75. Yeah, it's not on the ocean, but isn't far (200-250km).

Northern France, including Paris, often gets weather similar to southern England, just across the channel.

Both Great Britain and France benefit greatly from the Gulf Stream (the warm waters and prevailing easterly winds from the Caribbean).

There's fear that, with the melting glaciers of Greenland and the disappearing polar icecap, the Gulf Stream could be severely altered, which would bring unpredicatable consequences for northern Europe.

[PavePusher]

89. O.K. I lived in England for 7 1/2 years, visited Paris only briefly.

I had thought it was too far inland to be much affected that way. Thanks!

[get the red out]

29. Kentucky has the "beauty" of both

100 degree days and 20 degree days.

I dread both, right now is the best time of the year.

[WilmywoodNCparalegal]

30. I moved 4 months ago from SE coastal NC to Las Vegas, NV

so I have been in the LV area during its hottest temperatures (115 and 117 or so). I will take one of these 117 degree days in LV over a 90-degree day at the beach in NC with its nasty humidity and bugs.

I can handle the dry heat here in Vegas, but had a hard time with NC. Here in Vegas, I have a pool and lots of fans. We keep the thermostat to 82 degrees, but the fans really help.

[ananda]

31. I like the heat.

Maybe I'm acclimated, I don't know.

But I do know that cold does not agree with me,
that's for sure.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

32. I swim. I use AC. I drink cool liquids. I sweat a little. No biggie.

Neither heat nor humidity is a deterrent to this Florida resident. (I actually enjoy it in a perverse sort of way, actually.)

The thing is, if I sweat, I sweat. Sure, it's a little stinky, but other than that, it has no effect on me physically. (Within reason of course....I wouldn't want to expose myself to the heat to the point of getting heatstroke.)

But when it's cold, I feel it physcially. It hurts. I numb up. I ache. It's uncomfortable and I cannot stand to be out in the cold any longer than necessary.

That's why I prefer heat over cold any day of the week. Having lived up north and down south, I can say this affirmatively.

[Avalux]

33. August is my least favorite month.

I usually do ok until then, but by that time I am so tired and weary of the heat, I tend to stay indoors. And when the heat finally breaks as it did this past weekend, it's glorious.

I live in San Antonio.

[onethatcares]

35. west central florida here, west of tampa

and from april through september it's just a matter of drinking a lot of liquids(water/electrolytes), sweating and just not thinking about the heat and humidity.

I work outside too and I go through 3 tee shirts a day due to the sweat factor.

[Javaman]

36. Living in Texas, I as you folks in the "cold" states...

how do you stand it?

Living in temps, 32 degrees and below for months on end, with nothing but a frozen tundra to look at day after day after day, chipping your car out of a frozen block of ice every morning, avoiding the plow and hope it doesn't get buried by it, going out to "warm" up your car before you can actually use it to get to work, suffering the insanity of forgetting ones gloves or scarf, getting exhausted just from removing the countless layers of clothes you have to wear to keep warm, worring about whether or not your pipes will freeze; how can you stand it?

[Aerows]

42. I live in the Deep South

and have all of my life. It was a vacation to visit Michigan in February for a week (went for work) because all I had to do was pile on clothes. When it gets hot as hell here, and the humidity ratchets up, it is unbearable. I can put more on, but I can't take less off after a certain point.

You have to know it's bull to suggest otherwise. Wear a hat in winter. Problem mostly solved, and most Southerners (myself included) don't know WHY you wear a hat during the winter. Once you do and your ears are covered, no problem.

[dixiegrrrrl]

72. Socks in winter..makes all the difference to me.

Cold weather here is downright painful because of the humidity.
I had never been in cold in winter on the West Coast, moved down here and thought I would die when it got to 20 degrees for a few days. Bone hurting cold.
found out that socks and fleece are my friend in winter.
And gas heat, which dries out the humid air.
Again, speaking as one who is retired and does not have to play outside very much.

[justabob]

87. on layers

Yeah... you can always get under another blanket or sweater, but once you've stripped down to the skin, there is nothing left but to swim/shower in cool water...or pack yourself in ice. That isn't a great solution if you live where it is also humid.

[zen_bohemian]

50. I grew up in Texas, and moved to MN

Starting around October, I wanna move back home! The summers here are ok, not really all that hot, but the winters are a drag for me anyway.

[Aerows]

62. vs. Going out to your car

and deciding at lunch time that you'd rather not bake to death?

I live it. I've lived it in South Florida, in New Orleans, and on the Gulf Coast.

I went to Michigan in winter, and once I realized that all I needed to do was put a hat on my head and catch a taxi, I was overjoyed by winter. I went to Louisville, KY and went sledding for the first time in my 32 years. It was the most fun I'd had since hitting a beach (which admittedly, I love, too).

If I was rich, I'd spend time in each place. Nothing compares to a red hot summer in Florida, but a Michigan winter where it is 5 below and you are outside smoking and watching a snowfall a 7 am is pretty epic, too.

[hobbit709]

37. Ceiling fans, AC, minimal clothing, and anything ouside gets done by 9AM.

Having lived in both, it's easier to stay cool than to get warm.

[Aerows]

41. Disagree

it's harder to stay cool than it is to stay warm. I think this might be related to body fat, but I'm not sure. I'm pretty light and bake to death. When it is cold, I feel just fine provided I put on enough layers.

You can put more on, but you can't take more off after a certain level.

[hobbit709]

49. all you need is a little cool water if you find yourself getting overheated.

Frostbite takes a little more effort.
I have been outside in 50 below air temperature-not chill factor.

[Aerows]

60. I live where there is humidity regularly above 85%

A little cool water doesn't help. I've lived in the Deep South all of my life, and I know the washcloth with water on the back of the neck trick. It keeps you from outright dropping, but helps? Maybe like a blood transfusion keeps you from bleeding to death.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

40. We moved from L.A. to Oregon (and then to Washington) to beat the heat.

Other reasons as well but that was certainly a consideration.

[Tikki]

70. We live North of L A nearer the Pacific...we rarely get 'hot'....

or 'cold'. We grew up in a part of the NorthWest that was frickin' hot in the Summer.


The Tikkis

[smackd]

43. a/c, swimming pool, fans in every room, radiant barrier and little clothing as possible (nm)

[LeftyMom]

52. Air conditioning.

IMO cold is a lot worse. I mean, when's the last time you heard of somebody getting in an accident caused by hot roads? Or having a heart attack scooping up all the sunshine on their walkway? If you turn the air off while you're away you won't wreck your plumbing.

[Sentath]

65. Kansas

People die of both extremes here.

[LeftyMom]

79. I live in the place with the sunniest summers on Earth.

I'm always a bit perplexed how nobody dies in the heat here, except for the occasional person who has a very physical job done outside (and laws have been changed within the past few years to prevent that) but much cooler places have people dropping like flies in "heat waves" where the highs barely match the overnight lows on our warmest days.

I've come to the conclusion that it's stinginess. Even the warmest house can have a room kept cool with a hundred dollar window unit. Functional air conditioning is a legal requirement for habitability here, I'm told it's not in the midwest?

[raccoon]

86. Glad you mentioned that. I'd thought of going to KS last December. THere was a blizzard.

I'd thought of going the week of 4th of July. It was hot as hell there (and here).

[n2doc]

53. AC

However it is only bad down here in Savannah for about 4 months. The rest of the time it is really very pleasant. I do miss snow, although I don't miss driving on it.

[sammytko]

54. South tx here, I go outside as little as possible

Gets worse as I get older. I plan on spending my summers in Maine, once my responsibilities to family and pets have been fulfilled.

Good thing that when one gets really old, you are cold all the time! It will be ok then.

[a la izquierda]

55. I used to live in Oklahoma...

where it can be hot from March until November. I loved it, except I did miss autumn. I hate winter, but I cannot control my job travelings, so I've learned to be adaptable.

[tinrobot]

56. I grew up in Arizona, was used to the heat...

Then one day, I visited the San Francisco area. Moisture in the air, cool temps, trees, water... and a lot of really smart people who knew a lot about computers (this was the 80's).

That was it. A little over a year later, I moved there and never looked back.

[tavernier]

61. I live in the Florida Keys

Hate it. Horrible place. Hot, humid, intolerable. And please, please would you keep repeating those words to all the tourists who are considering moving here permanently. Meanwhile, I'm on my way out to the beach to watch the sunset with a Mojito in hand.

[NightWatcher]

63. unrelated, but when are the admins gonna update the Marlins logo for our avatars?

I HATE the old logo/colors but love the burnt orange/black thing they have now.

Think I might have to get a jersey to complement the burnt orange hat.

I love living down here too. I couldnt tell you the last time I saw snow. Actually it was when I lived in North Georgia in 04-05 and we had an ice storm that crippled the area for a week- No fun.

[Aerows]

68. Bugs bigger than the ones in New Orleans

That's how I remember it.

Well, sex toys, but mostly, just that huge bug.

[Aerows]

67. I love the Keys

I went there for Memorial day weekends once. You have bugs that are so big you could drop a brick on them, and they will crawl away with the brick on their backs.

Seriously. I've never seen a 2 1/2 inch bug before, I lived in New Orleans. Where Cockroaches fly at you and are large. Oh no. I went into the ladies restroom and nearly had heart failure because of the size of the roach. Yes, I have serious roach phobia. No, I'm not exaggerating how huge the fucking thing was. My partner took a picture of it.

Other than that, the Keys rock. We ate at La Trattatoria, road motorcycles, and stayed at a lesbian hotel. But the fucking bugs in bar bathrooms ... it was like Indiana Jones and the Temple of "get away, we have a room!"

[tavernier]

71. Nah. Now we ground 'em up

and sell them to tourists as Key Lime pie.

Ok, KIDDING!!!! Seriously, we love our tourists. The snow birds, on the other hand...the ones who brag that they bring their own food and booze along from Joisey in their RV's so they don't have to spend a cent while here... not so much.

I guess I'll gladly keep our "palmetto bugs"... they are not roaches, *wink wink*, and you all can keep those nasty yellow jackets that have seriously taken over the whole northern U.S., especially in the autumn months. I dread visiting my Indiana and Michigan neighbors because of those mean little bastards. And I don't see nearly as many spiders here in the Keys. I guess the scorpions eat them.

[dixiegrrrrl]

73. I don't see nearly as many spiders here in the Keys.

Twas the humidity that got 'em.
I have that on good authority.

[tblue37]

76. Air conditioning--with high electric bills. (Kansas) nt

[Warpy]

77. This summer was horrible.

It got hot around the first week of April and stayed hot until last week.

I soak my hair and I camp in front of a fan. I also don't go out after about 2 PM until well after dark.

I'm beginning to loathe summers. I was hoping as I aged to get cold all the time but that's just not going to happen.

[Kolesar]

83. I put a dripping washcloth on my head on a hot day

Sometimes I put an ice cube in it.

[phylny]

78. We live on Smith Mountain Lake.

When it gets hot, we jump in

[DesertFlower]

80. i've been in phoenix for 23 years.

before that i lived in queens, new york my whole life except for a few years on Long Island.

the summer is bad, but what i hate worse is the winter days when it drops below 70. sometimes we get as low as the 50s. that i can't stand.

anything under 70 and i'm "freezing my ass off".

i also like the dry climate. now i feel the slightest bit of humidity, but when it rains it smells so nice from the creosote bushes.

i stay indoors as much as possible in the summer -- same on those cold winter days. i find it easier to keep the house cool than warm.

bottom line. i'm a desert rat.

one of the best decisions in my life was to move here.

[Kolesar]

82. I prefer to hike on a cloudy day

Hiking is my pastime. When I am exerting myself climbing, I would rather have the weather cooperate by turning the radiant heat off. I have hike a lot in the sunny prairie, the Rockies and the deserts in Utah. I backpacked across the Grand Canyon and did it in mid October to take advantage of the long shadows.

[B Calm]

85. Went to see my dad in Tucson

one year in August, never again. . OMG it was 110 degrees everyday. Burn your hand just opening the car door.

[SammyWinstonJack]

84. I don't stand it very well at all. Sick of it, in fact.

Trying to sell the house now, buy a truck and fifth wheel and head out to the Oregon coast.

Came close a week ago, but the buyer backed out.

Hopefully, we'll not have to endure another Texas summer. *fingers crossed*

Twenty of them is quite enough!

[seabeyond]

88. hate it. hate it hate it hate it. airconditioning.

actually, the weather has been so unpredictable. spring seems to stay cooler much later. fall, temp drops often so a mix. june july and august a hell.

but this year was nothing like last year. last year was dry, hot and ugly. hell.

hate it.

hubby promises we are moving out when we can.

i have lived in hot most all my life.

az, calif and now texas

love the west. just want colo, oregon, wa.