Getting Warmer

Here in Phoenix, it is all about survival during the summer. We do minimal landscaping and have everything on a drip system to conserve water. We grow more rocks than plants. Most people have rocks in their yards and no grass. The temperatures here are climbing, with a forecasted high today of 115 degrees. It is getting so hot here that the weather bureau is forecasting a record overnight low high of 98 degrees. Some people will say that the high temps in Phoenix are ok, since it is a dry heat. Well that might work up to 105 deg, but by the time it hits 115 deg, it is downright HOT. Try breathing the air after getting into your car that has stood outside on a blacktop parking lot for an hour or more and you will understand what 115 deg really means.

But Phoenix relies on the tourist trade, so the local stations tend to play down the weather. For example, the local NBC station was showing its five day forecast the other day, and under the days when the temperature was forecasted to be over 110 deg, they showed the word WARM. They don't want to scare anyone away by saying the weather is actually hot. But we locals know differently. Other stations showed the same days in their forecasts as HOT.