It was another heat advisory when I left the house this afternoon. Around 99 with a heat index of 110 or so. Just another lovely day to spend in polyester pants.I was sweating by the time I got out of my truck and pretty damp by the time I got inside.
Sgt Uncle Buck told us "Stay in the shade. Drink plenty of water and don't move around too much! Don't want you guys getting sick!"
Hey, I can do that.
Not long after we got out on the yard it clouded up some and at least covered the sun so we didn't feel like an ant colony under a magnifying glass. That was some better. Then, just as soon as count cleared and we started running mainline the clouds went away and the temp soared again. Oh snap!
It stayed toasty hot all the way through chow and after the yards opened. I was drenched in sweat all the way down to my socks. And my eyelids are tender from wiping away the sweat. Yuck.
Then about 6:30 or so some more thunderheads rolled in and mercifully covered the sun again. It got just cool enough to breathe again. I could see some lightning off in the distance and i was sure hoping it was heading our way.
I'd count it the way I used to do when I was a kid. Wait for the flash and count "thousand one, thousand two, thousand three.."
At first it was like twenty five miles away. Then ten. Then five.... About that time Lt Farmer called on the radio and said "Close the yards!" Yay! The inmates all bitched and whined, of course. They lost about an hour and a half maybe of their yard time.
We didn't mind it so much.
The Fireman and I were sitting up in the shack after we got the yards clear and he said "We should go do our inner perimeter check now, or at least some of it, before it starts raining. I'd hate to get soaked." I agreed that was just a Jim Dandy idea so we set off in separate directions, checking the fences and the gates.
By the time I got to three house it was sprinkling some. Stubby and Sgt Giggles stepped out and said "You want a raincoat? We have extras!" I declined. It was just sprinkling and those raincoats are too hot anyway. I'd rather get wet.
When I turned the corner from three to four house it went from a sprinkle to a tarantula downpour and I got soaked to the skin in seconds. The Fireman calls me on the radio and says "I'm gonna hole up somewhere dry and we'll finish this later, okay?"
Well, I though that was another pretty good idea. maybe even better than the first one was. I walked in to the four house bubble and Miz Fawkes was on the phone. She holds it out to me and says "It's Sgt Giggles. He wants to know if you want that raincoat now?"
Where would I be without people like that watching my back?
It rained for maybe half an hour and let up long enough we got our check done finally. Afterwards we got treated to a lightning show that made up for missing the fireworks on the 4th. Several times I had to blink away from the flashes and still had the lines running through my eyes when I closed them, they were so bright.
At least it cooled it off some. It was only 76 outside when I left work tonight. Last night it was 90. Nasty.
Even now there's another storm rolling in and I may lose power or have to shut down. That sucks. But I do like lightning storms, despite the inconvenience.
I've always said if the weather isn't trying to actively kill you, it's just kind of boring.
Wednesday will be Fool's Paradise Day. I think that's where I work, for sure. It will also be Embrace Your Geekyness Day and Gruntled Workers day.
Enjoy!
