Are You HOT?

At time of posting CURRENT TEMPERATURE = 30 Celsius, HUMIDITY = 75%, HUMIDEX = 41 Celsius

No, this isn't a question about your looks. I am quite serious here, though I have seen the temperatures from Central Europe and I already know the answer. It has been as hot in Brno lately as it is here, in South Georgia, and I am a bit worried about how my friends are managing. The Heat Index makes the temperatures dangerous even for those accustomed to such weather. So for the benefit of my dear sweet ones from cooler climes, I am going to share some tips for keeping cool. I grew up in middle Georgia where the average highs for July and August are in the nineties (usually 30-35 Celsius) and it is almost always humid, too, which means that it feels a lot hotter than it actually is, so I am used to the hot humid weather (and actually like it). Our house wasn't always air conditioned, nor were the schools I attended for the first eight years. Only a few of the buildings where I attended college had AC, and the classrooms which did had such noisy window units that they had to be turned off during class. None of my grandparents houses were air conditioned, and when my great grandmother who died at age 98 in 1999, her house still had no AC. My point? I am born and bred to manage the heat, and since some of my Czech friends were kind enough to share with me the lowdown on staying warm in the cold and snow to which they were born and bred, I am returning the favor, by offering my advice for surviving the heat.

1. Move slowly. Do everything slowly. There's a reason why a southern accent is called a drawl, and the hot temperatures here have a lot to do with it. We even talk slowly.
2. Drink lots of cold water, and avoid alcohol and caffeinated drinks, since they tend to dehydrate you.
3. Use an electric fan. Fanning yourself with a hand fan will only increase your body temperature.
4. Get wet. Wipe your face and arms, and whatever other parts of you that you want to, with a damp cloth, take a cool (not cold) shower, go swimming.
5. Freeze partially filled water bottles (neperliva works best). You can sip the cold water as the ice melts, and while you are waiting for the ice to melt,
6. apply the frozen bottle to your wrists, forehead and neck. Or just wipe the condesation from the bottle and use the cloth to wipe your face, etc.
7. Wear thin, loose-fitting cotton clothes, put your hair up ( I like to keep my wet), and do without the jewelry.