The Joy of a Heat Wave

By Cal Orey, The Writing Gourmet

Today, in the Sierra it's hot, hot, hot. I can do heat but I prefer not to do it. After living at Lake Tahoe for more than a decade I've grown used to cold, cold, cold. It's cool. I layer clothing.  I stoke a mean fire in the old over-sized rock fireplace. Bake my fave dishes. Crank up the heat and the waterbed heater. And I cuddle up with the fur kids...
But now, in the heat of the summer it's different. Instead of sipping hot tea I'm taking to ice cold bottled water. Baking is out of the question and preparing quick and easy no-cook fare is on my agenda. Swimming outdoors instead of indoors is par for the course (it was utopia today) and the word hot tub isn't in my vocabulary. And that's not all...
I realize I'm more active in the fall--not the summer. I feel like a sluggish fish out of water. Yeah, I have writing to do but the words "later" and "tomorrow" comes to mind. When I was young(er) tanning was "in" but now it's "out." So, what to do except turn on the ceiling fan and watch the temperature go up on the online weather map. Enough...It's like black ice. I count the days. So, in theory we have about 60 more days (give or take) of hot weather. 
The best part is, I can see fall, sort of. It truly is around the corner. Meanwhile, more swimming, earlier dog walks, more water, more fruits and vegetables, less comforters and windows open at night. Did I mention autumn is coming in about two months? I can do this. Fall. Fall. Fall.