Heat Index

Temperature is not everything. There is also this thing called "heat index".

The heat index is a function of actual heat and humidity. The idea is to come up with a "feels like" figure to throw out to the public.

And here is how it works. You take the actual air temperature as felt by the thermometer. Then you factor in the relative humidity. Now using this chart, you can figure out what the heat index is.

Wednesday at around 1 PM it reached at least 94 degrees, with a relative humidity of around 55%. The chart says the heat index was at least 106.

I was outside under a tarp, working on the boat at this time. Out of the direct sun.

My shirt was soaked. It got so bad that holding onto the tools became difficult. I had to get rags to wipe sweat off things once my shirt was no longer working for this chore.

But I am a native. Heat in the summer is not really unheard of for South Florida. It is summer, therefore it will be hot.

Since I was working on the boat, and the boat is ALWAYS stocked with stuff to drink - it was not so bad. There was plenty of drinking water on board (I am never short of 20 oz water bottles) and also Gatorade.

It is critical to remain hydrated. If you get thirsty, you are already in the first stages of dehydration. Water is always good - but you also need something to replace the salt and other stuff you lose by sweating.

If you can prevent dehydration, then the heat is something you can deal with.

It is not like you have a choice down here anyway.

At least there is no reason to own a snow shovel down here. That works for me.