Oh, the Humidity!

Dear Friends, 

We haven't even hit the middle of June here in Illinois, and I'm already whining about the heat and humidity. I swear, while I was putting on my makeup Saturday morning after breakfast, I watched my face melt in the mirror. Between the rising temperature and moisture in the air, the base layer of sunscreen was sliding down my skin, taking my tinted moisturizer with it. My cheeks were beaded with sweat, and my arms were glistening. After I dried my hair, we ate breakfast, and then I had to dry my hair again. Oy vey.

Chuck and I had a tough decision to make this morning: taking the train in to Chicago, and pounding the pavement to do our favorite 7 miles of downtown in 95 degrees of heat, with a good chance of rain, or going to Lake Geneva, and doing a walk along the lakeshore in temps that were likely going to be in the 90s, as well, with a much less chance of rain, and a good chance of air movement by the water. We went for the lakeshore breezes.

When we arrived in our favorite little Wisconsin town, the air was surprisingly pleasant at 78 degrees. The skies were overcast, and there was a delightful little breeze. Perfect. I had a headache setting in, and I hoped gulping down some Tylenol with my iced tea would nip that in the bud. We set off with our cameras to walk the path along the lake.

Just before we reached our turnaround point, I realized the sun was burning through the parting cloud cover, the humidity was climbing, and I had a river of sweat running from my head down my back. This asymmetrical haircut seems to pull all of the perspiration on the longer strands' side, adding a steady drip to my left shoulder. My clothes were sticking to me wherever the sweat was pooling. My waistband was drenched, and my hair was wilting. I couldn't wait to get to the air-conditioned restaurant.

By the time we got back to the car, it was over 90 degrees. No big deal, right? Well, if we were in Utah, I'd say no, but we were in the middle of the midwest where the humidity factor takes summer temperature and makes it something quite unbearable.

Or is that just me? When I left Virginia to go to college in Utah, I happily said adios to humidity, and welcomed the arid landscape with open arms. Now that I've returned to the land of humidity, this time in Illinois, I'm going to have to make peace with this dampness, or find entertaining ways to deal with it. 

Any suggestions from my friends who survive the hot, wet days of summer with less whining? 

In Utah, those neck scarves filled with water absorbing pellets work well to aid in evaporation to cool me off when I'm hiking in the desert. Would that even work here in the midwest where there is already so much dampness? 

I've realized I may have to purchase an adorable hat to hide the fact that humidity is a constant factor in the bad hair day equation for me. I've toyed with the thought of getting a wading pool for our deck when I get desperate, but constantly cleaning leaves out of it is making me hold off on that idea. Homemade popsicles...iced tea...sitting in front of the open fridge... Please, if you have better ideas, do share!

Signed,

Desperate in the Land of Humidity