Before I was even awake today, I could feel the heat and the humidity, that heavy thickness that makes me lethargic. While the kids were asleep, I made macaroni salad and fruit salad, the only things I could even imagine eating in this weather, and put big containers of both into the refrigerator. I figured that making food gave me all kinds of parenting points, and I had earned the right to just lie on the floor for the rest of the day.
Boy in Black had decided the heat should not stop anyone from playing Ultimate Frisbee. By noon, teenagers had begun to arrive, carrying bottles of water and looking surprisingly cheerful as they set their cell phones on the bookcase near the door and prepared to go out onto the hot field. "Oh, it's cooling down," CoolKid said optimistically as he stripped off his shirt.
I opted out of the game, since I felt headachy and nauseous, on the edge of a migraine. The headache was a good sign, actually, since I get migraines when low pressure systems move through. The conditions, I thought hopefully, were just right for a good thunderstorm, which would cool things down in no time.
Late afternoon, the storm arrived. Finally. The thunder came rolling from a distance, with lightning splitting open the sky above trees that were shaking in the wind. Rain came crashing down, a hard steady rain, pounding down on grass and teenagers. The Ultimate Frisbee game continued, kids racing about in the midst of dramatic crashes of thunder, the storm making the frisbee go off in crazy directions.
"This feels good!" My daughter exclaimed. I could hear sighs from the other players as they agreed with her. They splashed through the new puddles, intent on the game, stopping only to wring out the bottoms of their t-shirts and to re-tie wet bandanas.
I stood on the edge of the field and watched them, the rain soaking my hair, my shirt, my shorts. The wind gusted across the field, slapping water drops against my legs and arms. My headache disappeared, and so did the lethargy. After three days of heat, it felt just wonderful.
14 comments:
Beautiful photos.
We are suffering the same heat, but unfortunately for us the storms could be heard, but passed us by today. It is supposed to cool down tomorrow anyway but we really could have used the rain.
Your photos are really beautiful... more so than ususal :).
great shots of that rain...and it does look like fun. Hope it cools off, we are having a heat wave here too.
My word verification for this comment is "texspppa," which strikes me as kinda funny. Or maybe it is just the heat getting to me :).
Ohh, I hope that means we are getting the storms soon!
What great photos.
I am now off to make some macaroni salad for tomorrow. You put your finger on exactly what I was looking for when I was standing in front of the fridge to cool off earlier.
The pictures are gorgeous... hard to put into words why. So joyful, I guess, and so dramatic, with the rain. Funny to be reading your post just at this moment, since the storm has just hit here, several hours later. I was sitting on my stoop escaping the heat in my apartment when a huge crack of thunder followed by lightning scared me out of my wits and sent me inside. Then, big fat raindrops falling outside in the streetlights. I could see a teenage girl sitting on the stoop across from me--what is it about teenagers and rain? Now, not 15 minutes later, the rain seems to have stopped. I think we are in for some more humidity tomorrow and then finally some relief.
We had a double rainbow at the start of our storm. Throughout, the sun never left the western sky as wind whipped the rain across the road and the rooftops. Somehow I always feel both frightened and satisfied at the sight of that eerie storm-light.
I played Ultimate for the first time in 10 years on Monday. One good thing about playing in the rain is that when your brain is moving faster than your feet and you plow dirt with your kees and elbows, you're less likely to end up with scabs. Do you play regularly?
My entire family headed out to the backyard and stood in the storm, faces turned upwards, eyes closed. If our mouths would have been open, we would have looked like a flock of turkeys.
It was wonderful.
- bridgettt
Um,I am sure it was beautiful, but this is where I fly my worry freak flag proudly. You might want to reconsider being outside in thunderstorms due to the incidence of lightning strikes and the potential for death.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/24/nyregion/nyregionspecial2/24colct.html?ref=nyregionspecial2
I can just feel the relief.
YUMMY!!
The rain that soaked me as I ran this morning felt really good too.
It looks like they're having a lot of fun!
I sort of envy you, I could do with some rain. For a few days it's been looking like thunderstorms, but nothing came down. However, it's not that hot any more, so it's not so bad.
Looks like so much fun!
It's hot and humid here. We really need a few days of heavy rain. I hate the crunchy grass.
Oh, the RAIN!
What wonderful photos. :)
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