(Dedicated to Dad, who suggested I write about this, maybe it was his ploy to get me to stop complaining...)Oh the joys of living in Darwin. Let me count the ways...Wait, that's right I can't think of the joys at the moment because my ability to respond positively is being hampered by the pool of sweat that I am currently sitting in. The exercise ball which I use as a desk seat is currently stuck to my legs by sweat. Yes the air con IS on, the fan IS on full bore and I am sitting in a dark room at night, sweating!! Move to Darwin ITS GREAT!!! AH AHHHA HHHA HA HAHAHHHA!!!!
Some days you go a little insane living in Darwin. It is the silly season, troppo time, mango madness, whatever you call it, no matter which way you look at it, it's a tough time to be in the tropics. A few weeks back I was thinking 'this is about as bad as it will get, its not too bad, this is fine, i've aclimatised, i'm coping great'. And then the weather man decided to bump it up a notch. I am not sure what the humidity levels are but I can tell you it is already 31c at 8am. Mornings are the toughest, humidity is at its highest, there is rarely a breeze and you have the whole day ahead of you! The only hope of relief is a down pour of refreshing rain. When it pours it pours and it is a heaven sent oasis of cool. I have some friends who keep a close eye on BOM (bureau of meteorology) they have a cool map that shows where the clouds are, and they ravenously watch and hope for rain. The best time of day for it to rain is the mid to late afternoon because then its not likely to get hot again before the sun goes down and then it might be a few degrees cooler overnight. The problem is if it rains during hte morning and the sun returns its about twice as bad as the drenched roads start steaming up and the humidity soars. Of course the best thing is when it rains all day and all night for a few weeks-monsoon time! However this is unlikely to happen until late december. Until then we can only hope for short term relief and survival mode techniques, some of which I will now share with you.
Christy's Build-up Survival tips
Live in a house with airconditioning THROUGH OUT. We don't and I really recommend this as something to assist with your sanity. My way of workign around this is by shutting up the house (working better now with my new block-out curtains) and letting the bedroom 'cons do the rest. This works ok, it IS a lot cooler than outside but I am still sweating.
Do as much tidying up the night before. As I mentioned it is hottest in the mornings, which is when I usually get the most house work done. However with the humidity being extreme and having two littlies to tend to, its good to wake up to a tidy house- one less thing to push you over the edge.
Keep the freezer stocked with ice blocks and icy treats (and flannels, according to mum...) Shane just arrived home with the requested frosty fruits which is pleasing on the palatte as well as the body temp. You just have to eat them very quickly!
Shave your head. I haven't yet done this one, but I am sure it would help as my head gets soooo hot. I opt for keeping it up instead, but you never know...One day...
Get out of the house. This is probably my number one trick to survival. Yesterday I left the house at 7am to drop Shane at work. I had almost literally just gotten out of bed, but I grabbed a few things and we got in the car. I didn't return until after I had picked up Shane. I spent the day at my friend Tenny's, who, as well as being good company, has a beautiful air conditioned home. So we camped there for the day and my mental health was better for it. Thanks Tenny!
Shower. When the girls are off to bed midday I usually have shower and change clothes. So refreshing. A blast of really hot and then cold (ok we don't get cold, lukewarm) water and out under the fans in my towel and I almost feel cool for a few minutes. You need to towel down thoroughly otherwise its mere minutes before you can't work out what is shower dew and what is fresh sweat. It sorta helps me feel like the slate is wiped clean and I start again mentally. Doing things in the heat, any stresses and frustrations start to build up (therest that word again) and you can bubble over at any moment. So a shower is a good way to stop that pressure cooker, or at least slow it down.
Keep your eyes on the prize! Yes it is 1 week and 6 days until I and the girls depart for Adelaide. I am not even daunted a the thought of taking the two of them, on my own, in the middle of the night, on a 3.5 hour plane ride with two seats for the three of us. I think I would bus it on my own with them just to get some relief. So yes, I am counting down the days and trying to stay focused and stay sane knowing that it won't be long and I will be wearing slippers and cardies again.
Well that is what I can think of at the moment, there are more I am sure and maybe I will do a second installment sometime soon. It's really the number one thing that is on my mind right now; surviving the build up. Its amazing how the weather can affect one's mental state to such an extreme. It's not just me either. Pretty much every single person you talk to is struggling right now. I guess that in a way helps make you feel better. Knowing you are not crazy and you aren't alone everyone is struggling and the shared burden of the build up makes it somewhat easier to bear. All I know is, even Shane is complaining, so it must be bad! Pray for us!
