What I learned from this heat wave
What I learned from this heat wave
Saturday was hot. 105 degrees hot.
This day was also my son’s 5th birthday party. Around noon is when family members slowly started to arrive. At this point I noticed it was getting warm in my house but dismissed the idea. After all, we have A/C.
Meanwhile, I’m in need of ripping off my clothes based on a feeling I refer to as “host hot flashes.” For those of you who’ve thrown a party, you know what I’m talking about. In the effort to make my house look like no one lives here, I scurry around like a squirrel picking up stuff here and throwing them elsewhere, preferably a closet no one will open, to keep my stash of crap out of sight. I thought I was sweaty from trying to make my house look glamor-shot ready. No need to worry. It’s not hot because, duh, we have A/C.
Then more family started trickling in, letting wafts of broiling air inside each time my front door swung open. In came their hot breaths, each laugh and greeting adding to the density. Those exhales tangoed with steam rising from freshly baked pizzas. Our skylights and windows without blinds added to the hotbox effect.
Here I am, noticing another wave of hot flash when my sister-in-law asked very gracefully, “How cool is it in here?”
“I don’t know, I think we’re keeping the thermostat at 78 because SDG&E asked us to help them conserve energy,” I said, confidently, wiping the beads from my forehead. I complained about how unlikely any of my neighbors were following the request. We’re the suckers for withstanding a little more heat so everyone keeps their A/C on.
Then I lock eyes with my husband. He was also acting squirrely, except he was rushing from one vent to another, hoping to find a nugget of cold air somewhere.
His cheeks flushed. “The air isn’t working.”
Turns out it wasn’t just me. It was near 90 degrees inside my house.
Over the next 24 hours I broke, especially after finding out our A/C may not be fixed for a while. On September 3, 2022, where I beamed about surviving another labor and lived to tell the story, I also learned that I also have become weak.
In this time frame, I had so many things to be thankful for but I let the heat beat me to the punchline.
First, I focused on how it never got lower than 85 degrees at night, therefore my house never became a bearable temperature. What about being grateful for my husband’s office A/C wall unit that gave us reprieve?
Then the morning after the party there were a few dishes left on the counter and I let the tiny mess get to me. I left little regard to my cousin and nephew who graciously cleaned a majority of the kitchen the night before.
My son’s face was dotted with beads of sweat but he was smiling, playing with his new toy train. My daughter found excitement with the idea of placing her t-shirt in the freezer, then discovering its magic once she pulled it out to wear 20 minutes later.
Then there’s me, who had an attitude as short as my 5’2” frame.
This is so embarrassing to admit, everyone. My life is surrounded with cooling and fortunate things yet all I could think of was how I needed out. I have a pool. I have an ice machine. We have sprinklers. A freezer stocked full of popsicles. Here’s the kicker. We have an ice bath in my backyard.
Blind to my blessings, I packed up our bags after we decided to use points and check into a hotel. Then my husband locked eyes with me again, a different look, unsure and uneasy.
Were we making the right decision? This seemed excessive. Everyone else seemed fine, except me and my husband. What were we teaching our kids and nephew?
Based on these actions, when things get hard, we check out and run away. We let the uncomfortable circumstances rule us.
Or we can show our family how we muscle through the hard. When something is difficult, do we run away? Well, let me be real with you. I almost did it, luggage in tow.
We decided to ditch the escape route and stayed in our home, even though it felt like a sauna. We talked about how we almost let the heat get to us but we decided to stay strong and get through it.
This became an opportunity for us to tell stories about all the times we did not have A/C. Like when my college roommates and I refused to turn on the air every muggy summer in Davis, wondering why we chose to live in a 2nd and 3rd story apartment. My husband and I didn’t have A/C for the first two years after we bought our home, located inland in San Diego County. Basically the desert. I fondly told my kids about how I’d work from home in a bikini.
Yet here I am. On September 4, 2022, I survived another hot day without A/C and lived to show – not just tell – my kids I can power through it. I learned that I have strength even when things get tough. Now hand me an ice pack, the A/C is still broken.