… and I’m not talking about the sauce on my burrito either.

The entire month of July has been running hot with highs above 100 for most of the last few weeks. Normally, the highs at this time of year are in the upper 80s, so you might say that the temperature has been running 12-16 degrees above historical norms for the past month. Couple that with unheard of amounts of rain and it has not only been hot but humid with occasional floods here in the semi-desert.

L and I were talking about it tonight at supper as we contemplated next month. August is usually the scorcher around here, with occasional highs in the 116 to 119 range. If August runs 10 degrees above the historical norms, it could be a bit too toasty for my taste. Not only that, but that will be the time of the county fair and marching parade. Nothing says semi-desert like marching a few miles in 100 degree heat while carrying a tuba on your shoulder. One year L and I led a precision marching keyboard and kazoo team in the parade – and boy were we glad to reach the end of the route. I can’t imagine doing it in even hotter weather.

The extreme temperature variations, unusual rainfall, and severe wind all bring to mind the idiocy of those who espouse the no climate change line. Sort of like this editorial cartoon concerning everyone’s favorite and least factual news station:

Of course, one always has to keep in mind that all news media are a bit slow on the mental uptake, especially around any sort of a rating period. In these days of Jerry Springeresque news coverage it is no wonder that many people forgo the mass media in favor of the bits and pieces they can glean from the internet. Nothing brings it home like the “local color” segments.

Time for me to head back to waiting for it to cool off a bit. What’s the weather doing in your neck of the woods (or desert as it may be)?