You Know You're in the Middle of a Heat Wave When...

• you welcome the little breath of cool air that comes out from the air-conditioned bank when you withdraw cash from the ATM
• the hot air coming out of the bottom of the fridge is heating up your kitchen so much that you think someone left the oven on
• you are too scared to turn the fans or the little air-conditioner in the bedroom up too high in case it triggers a black-out in your suburb
• and when you think it's better to be riding your bike home at 7.00 at night, when the temperature is still 43, than being stuck on a crowded train platform because the train tracks have buckled in the heat.
• and when you know that however bad it is in Melbourne, it's worse in Adelaide

[Update: later that same day: still 43C]

• when your sunglasses get almost too hot to wear on your face
• when the pavement burns your feet through your sandals
  
• when the thermostat inside the car registers 50C
• when the bitumen is breaking up on the roads
• and when there are fires on Hoddle St and a bookshop in Carlton, because the air conditioner exploded. Watch this space.
  

Really looking forward to that cool change they are promising: just 35 tomorrow!

Adelaide one day; Melbourne the next

In all the vagaries of summer weather, one thing is pretty sure: whatever they're doing in Adelaide, we'll probably be doing half a day later, though not always in such an extreme fashion. Same goes for blogging, with Pavlov's Cat and me. Not for the first time has she pre-empted me on a bloggy topic.

This morning she mentions the hot night, and opening up the house when the temperature drops. In our house I am the one who obsessively patrols the doors and windows, opening and closing according to the time of day, the angle of the sun, and the direction of the wind, constantly modulating to maximise comfort.

Last night was Melbourne's third hottest night on record, going down to a minimum of 28.1 (that's 86, by the double-the-number-you-first-thought-of-and-add-30 method of conversion). We were heading for 39 today, but the cool change came in much earlier than expected, and we only got to 32 before the south-westerly breeze blew in. I'm now sitting with the french door in my study open; and it's perfectly pleasant. Because we'd had only one day of extreme heat, the old brick part of the house hasn't heated up at all, so we are off the hook for a few more days, I think, till the temperature climbs again. Hope it's pleasant on Saturday when we are off to the tennis for the final of the Open lead-up tournament. I also hope Roger Federer makes it through to Saturday...

OK, back to work now.