Sunday Musings At The End Of The Heatwave

~ beetleypete

After an uncomfortable night for sleeping, it is set to get even hotter today, with a maximum of 31C forecast. But that forecast also stated that this will be the end of the unusual June heatwave, with temperatures dropping by 10C tomorrow, to a more ‘normal’ 21-22. That will not only be most welcome for undisturbed sleep, but also for poor Ollie, who has literally been flattened by the heat this past week. He has even gone so far as to lie down on the stone tiles on the kitchen floor, trying to find the coldest spot in the house.

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Summer in Britain also brings a lack of interesting things to watch on TV, as the companies don’t bother that much with new drama, presuming nobody is sitting inside watching, I suppose. And we currently have non-stop coverage of the Glastonbury Music Festival on the BBC channels, but that has never really interested me despite my lifelong love of music. This is why we have a PVR, so that there is always something to watch when we settle down after dinner.

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Last night I went to bed early, intending to lie in front of the large fan we have in the bedroom, and perhaps try to start reading again. But after one page of a book I have still not finished, I closed my Kindle Tablet and went to sleep. I wonder if I will ever be able to finish a book again. Since the Pandemic I have lost my concentration for reading books, and I have absolutely no idea why that is.

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There used to be a TV advert here for a brand of medicine. The catchphrase was “Summer cold? Or is it Flu?” I remember the ad, but cannot remember the brand name of the drug you could buy. I mention this because Julie and I have caught something ‘nasty’ since the weather got really hot. She has had it worse than me, with a bad cough that is worse in the evenings, and laryngitis that caused her to lose her voice for two days. We both still have it, including a runny nose, and sore throat. I am taking tablets to help, and Julie did a Covid test, just in case. It was negative.

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Wherever you are, heatwave or not, I hope you are having an enjoyable Sunday.

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44 thoughts on “Sunday Musings At The End Of The Heatwave”

  1. Summer colds are horrible, as most of what you’re supposed to do to get better doesn’t appeal at all in hot weather. Air conditioning and the sudden changes in temperature do affect me badly, but these days there are limitations imposed on the temperature in commercial venues here, so they aren’t as chilly as they used to be. I have seen that the weather is cooler now there. We’re still suffering the heatwave for a couple of days more, but the cooler weather won’t last long either. I hope you both get better soon.

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  2. Poor Ollie, and both of you in the heat. I know exactly why you can’t focus on reading; it’s the Kindle vs a hard copy book. All the studies show the print on a tablet is different from the print on a book. Me? Regardless of studies, I know that the real deal, hands-on book is far better. It works and holds reader’s attention. Ditch the Kindle and check out books from the library. Best to you, Pete.

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    1. By coincidence, the other book I am, struggling to read is a hardback. I still buy real books, even though I never know if I will read them. It’s like an addictive memory of how much I loved them.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  6. (1) Please send your 31° C days to Las Vegas.
    (2) I haven’t had TV in over a decade. And I don’t miss it.
    (3) I hope you regain your concentration so that you can read books on your tablet again. I haven’t read a book in two years now. But for different reasons.
    (4) I hope you get over the mystery illness. Tell Julie that Ms. Echo missed hearing from her.
    (5) This will be a quiet day for me. Yesterday, I attended a birthday gathering for over five hours. I had a great time.

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  7. “It is so rarely this hot here that A/C is not worth the expense of installation….” Well, I have a portable one for the summer months, best money I’ve spent…..

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  10. Hope you, Julie and Ollie feel better soon! Hot as hell here today but an ominous set of clouds is looming towards us, fingers xt for thunderstorms and a break in this heat.

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  11. I think I never felt the heat as acutely as when I was in England which never needed to gear up for really hot weather. Poor Ollie. Maybe he could cool off in the bath tub. Not very practical I suppose. Sorry about your cold. They always seem worse in the summer, not sure why.

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    1. We bought him a paddling pool some years ago, but he refused to sit in it! He also refuses to lie in front of a fan.
      Summer colds are definitely made worse by the heat and lack of sleep.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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    1. I am trying to read anything, Don, but mostly dramas or histories. I just lose concentration, and end up re-reading the same chapter to remember what happened. Might just be my age.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  14. About your book concentration — I have noticed that covid has produced many and varied new sensations and feelings in myself –things i never felt before –my brain seems to have decided it is supposed to control more of me than I am supposed to control sometimes …

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  15. The brand name of the over-the-counter medicine whose advertising contains the words, “Summer cold? Or is it Flu?” is Robitussin. The ad campaign was launched in 2019 and features a woman who is trying to figure out if she has a summer cold or the flu. The ad ends with the tagline, “It’s not always easy to tell the difference. But Robitussin can help.”

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    1. That is the forecast, Cindy. We are experiencing an accelleration in global warming, supposedly. There are now warnings about disease-carrying mosquitoes settling in Britain, something we have never had previously. Hopefully, next week’s cool-down will bring things back to normal.
      The heatwave has been cased by southerly winds coming from North Africa and Spain. The wind is changing to the west tomorrow, coming in from The Atlantic Ocean.
      Best wishes, Pete. x

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