The heat

It’s hot in Sanford this week, simple as that. For the first time all summer, temperatures are at the 100 degree mark, and the heat index is even worse.
But this week aside, my first summer in North Carolina has been amazing when it comes to weather.
You’ve not suffered through a summer until you’ve spent them in Dallas, Texas … Houston, Texas … Lafayette, Louisiana. These are the three cities I’ve lived in over the past 20-plus years, and its these cities that have molded my idea of what a summer is.
In Dallas, 100 degrees comes in June … sticks around weeks on end, has the occasional dip before making itself known again in August (sometimes September). In Houston, it never gets to 100 because of the Gulf, but it may as well be 120 if you count in the humidity. Same goes with Lafayette, only throw in giant mosquitoes.
My first summer in Sanford has seen days mostly in the upper 80s. We even had a 4-5 day stretch where the highs were about 78-79. There’s very little humidity (compared to the deep south), and there’s usually a breeze.
Weather’s a big reason why my wife and I chose to come this way, and after this first summer, we’re very glad we did. We’re looking forward to a real fall (not quite New England fall, but we just want colored leaves … where we’re from, the leaves change colors in August, but that’s only because they’ve been singed to a deep orange or brown).
So summer gets an A from us … the only thing keep it from an A+ is this past week.
Yes, it’s hot even for us.
But you know, it’s August. We’ve been waiting for this.