weather or not

Something seems to be amiss with the weather this year.

At dinner on Monday, Ed, Roxane, and I were talking about the lack of hurricanes this summer -- even tropical storms. They simply have not been directly affecting our little villages.

What caught out attention is that there have now been thirteen named Pacific storms this season, but none have threatened our bucolic shores. Lester, who is now barreling down on the Hawaiian islands, was spawned off the coast of Mexico. Apparently, it had a mind to wreak havoc on higher priced land.

When we are not calling it the hellishly hot season, summer's well-earned title is the wet season. The problem is it has not been very wet this year.

One of the pleasures of past summers has been the rain that would fall a couple of times a week temporarily relieving us of the type of humidity that is just short of waterboarding. At night, it can feel as if someone has wrapped a hot, wet towel around my head.

I can recall only two rainstorms this year that are worthy of the name. We have had a few sprinkles now and then, but almost no gully-washers.*

That is one reason I have succumbed to the siren call of air conditioning. At least, for my bedroom. Barco is struggling with the afternoon heat. If I am home, he has his nose pressed as close as he can to my floor fan.

The installer was here this morning taking some measurements. He will be back tomorrow afternoon with his crew to install a system -- with the compressor resting on the roof.  All that for $7,000 (Mx). About $370 (US).

I now have the pool for daytime cooling -- and will have air conditioning for sleeping. It will be far better than waiting on the rains to break the heat.


* -- We are not yet out of the weather woods. Our big hurricane last year (Patricia) did not show up until late October. That orange X, off the coast of Guatemala, on the hurricane map may bring us some joy -- or terror. With storms, you never know what you are going to get.