Tuesday, September 04, 2007

Emerging From the Cocoon

The God-awful 110 degree heat we've had for well over 10 days has finally relinquished it's death grip on us tonight. There has been no breeze of late. Just horrible, hot Satan's breath that feels as though it's trying to steal your essence of being. I've had the house shut tight since it started; blinds closed, curtains drawn.

I found myself sleeping during the heat of the day and going out to the shop to work or torch in wee hours. I've started to feel very disconnected from the world here in my little cocoon.

I was amazed during my morning metal smithing class in Santa Monica - usually a cool, breezy beach town - when I realized everyone was sweating onto their jewelry projects. By the end of the 2 1/2 hour class, the whole room wreaked of B.O.

Instead of heading straight back to the valley, where it was sure to be even hotter, I opted to have a little taste of home for lunch. I drove down to Hermosa Beach to the Ragin' Cajun Cafe. I've known Steve Domingue, the owner, almost 20 years now. Steve is a descendant of Mr. Trappey and well, let's just say, the boy can cook. When I'm hankering for home cooking - not some L.A. chef's idea of Cajun food, but the real deal - a meal at the Ragin' Cajun sure hits the spot.

Feeling quite happy after my wonderful meal of catfish, hush puppies, coleslaw and a generous helping of Trappey's pickled okra, I headed over to Pacific Artglass to stock up on supplies for my upcoming classes and pick up a few torching rods and frit. The place has no a/c... they don't need it; They're just a few miles from the beach. Again, I found myself sweating and miserable. I cut my shopping trip short and had a good laugh about not meeting my "minimum exit fee" there.

Once home, I peeled off the sticky, stinky clothes. After a quick shower, I curled up next to the girl and snoozed...just drained. I awoke to Mabel whining. It was getting dark and she wanted her hike. I quickly dressed and opened the back door mentally preparing for that blast of hot air. But instead I found what feels like a long lost friend... a gentle breeze and MUCH cooler weather.

It's such a pleasant change. For the first time in over a week, there were other hikers on the trails. And on my grocery outing, our little town was packed. People were everywhere and smiling. It nice to be outside again.



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4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I can't even imagine heat like that! It was in the lower 90s for weeks on end - and I thought that was miserable in the middle of the day - though I like the mornings and evenings. I'd stay in a cocoon, too. Glad to hear that it's cooling off for you.

CreekHiker / HollysFolly said...

Jackie, It was awful! The 90s we had today felt like yard work weather! We've got a gentle ocean breeze blowing tonight. I sat on my back porch for a while when the Rhodies stopped by on their walk... It was lovely!

Anonymous said...

ooh, I can't wait for my own cool breeze here, it's supposed to cool down this week.

CreekHiker / HollysFolly said...

Janet,

Last night, I got to open the windows and for the first time in months, the house cooled off MORE during the night! Yeah!