I Love the Southwest Desert and it's Hot most of the time every year... but some years we get those record breaking heatwaves that are even extreme by our standards! *LOL*
And this has been one of 'those' Summers... this week in particular. Instead of feeling like the Valley of the Sun it has felt like the surface of the Sun and I'm not exaggerating... the other day it got to 120 degrees... yes, one hundred and twenty freakin' degrees my Friends!!!
Yep, and it's Monsoon Season so it wasn't a usual Arizona Dry Heat of 120 degrees, there was humidity! *Uggg... humidity can be the devil!* If you want some idea of how this might have felt, go to your kitchen, turn on your oven, open the door, spritz yourselves 'til soaked to the skin with some water and let the heat blast bake you until you can barely stand it anymore! *LOL* Yeah, it kinda felt like THAT!
So, needless to say all week, outside activity has been temporarily suspended... which means the G-Kid Force are climbing the walls or inviting all their Friends inside to play... which equals Gramma climbing the walls and running damage control all over the House! *LOL*
It also means either a very early wake-up call before daylight to water the Garden... or doing it after Midnight when it's only 100 degrees... yeah, that's the usual 'Cooler' temperature we're enjoying in the Evenings about now. *Smiles* How my plants are still thriving and blooming I'll never know... because I'm virtually wilting every time I step outside for just a moment! And the Bohemian Cat Boys and Yul are conspicuous by their absence as they languish amid the tangle of unkept Greenery in the Shade.
Well, maybe not Yul so much since he is very vocal about his displeasure of having to wear a fur coat when it's 120 freakin' degrees! I can only Imagine what he's saying. And since he Loves to play in the water with the Kids to Cool off, we have muddy pawprints on the Patio, Lawn Furniture and all the Vehicles, probably as an act of pure defiance from the King of Siam!?! *LOL*
I Love a lush Garden and in the Desert that takes a lot of diligence and TLC... but when there's record breaking temps I just don't have it in me to get out there and do any physical labor, so the Plants have to have the strong Will to Live and Survive, or they're just not gonna make it! *Winks*
And God Bless all the Wild Creatures that make the Desert their Home... and go about their Daily Business as usual in spite of the intense Heatwave and droughts and no well trained Humans to respond to their every whim, beck and call... *Smiles*... Nature is so resourceful and resilient, I stand in Awe!
And I also stand in various Restaurants for cheap food and entertainment alternatives to feed and amuse the G-Kid Force and their Friends since there's no way I'm standing in a Kitchen at Home slaving over a Hot Stove and heating the House up on 120 degree days while the Kids tear up the House! *LOL*
It doesn't look like they're protesting very much at not having a Home cooked meal and Gramma bellowing to Calm Down & Clean Up their mess now does it? *Winks*
And besides... you can't Win Prizes at Home like you can at Chuck E Cheese... Princess T is the Grand Master at racking up those Prize Points... she beats the older Kids every time... quite a 'Lil Hustler this one is... and then she stands at the counter and Negotiates Freebie points with the Staff to get them good Prizes she's Jonesin' and running her Hustle for! *Winks*
And she's the self-appointed Treasurer of the Tokens... divying them up like a Pit Boss at Vegas! *Smiles*
And man can them Kids go thru some Tokens... good thing Chuck E is Patriotic and supports our Military and Veterans by giving extra Free Tokens with a Military I.D.! *Whew* Those Shiny Golden Token Coins mezmerize a Child and put them in a Prize Winning Trance with Visions of Winning those Big Kahuna Treasures on the Wall of Game Heaven Offerings. After all, how hard could it be and how many Game Tokens does it take to rack up ridiculous amounts of Points to win something that could be had for a buck at the Dollar Store?! *LOL*
Because when you're a Kid it's ALL about the Games and winning the worthless crap priceless treasures such as little rubber lizards and plastic chachkes for a gazillion Prize Points each... the Food is secondary! *LOL* Sometimes I wonder why I even bother to buy THEM Food since tearing them away from the Games is like getting a Junkie off Crack by offering mere Food! *Winks*
And the only thing better than playing the Games is Rejoicing over your Lil Sis's Killer Negotiating Skills at Hustling the Staff behind the Prize Counter so effectively that you have a large pile of worthless crap priceless treasures that your Gramma will probably end up accidentally vaccuuming up off the Persian Rug next week because she didn't see it against the Rug Design it so effectively blended in with like camoflauge!? Or Grandpa will re-discover it for you as he steps on it and nearly kills himself or impales his bare foot on it! *Smiles*
But for Gramma it's ALL about the Food... and the Convenience... of spending a 120 degree Day in an Atmosphere where someone else is doing all the cooking and clean-up... and the Kids can play freely and burn off all their excess energy and pent up heat induced aggression in Air Conditioned comfort and safety without tearing her House up! And leaving her alone to relax, visit with other Adults and maybe even read a good book! *Ahhhhhhh*
Yeah, I'm beginning to Love that Mouse Chuck E...
He's really helped a Sistah out during a brutally Hot record breaking Heatwave... instead of killing each other at Home they can kill imaginary adversaries on a video screen instead...
Instead of further crippling Grandpa by asking for Pony Rides on his blown out knees she can ride the Chuck E Cheese Stallion into the Imaginary Sunset...
And spy on her Big Bro' and his 'Date' at the next table... giggling at their conversations and telling Gramma what 'Young Tween' things they're talking about... *Winks* I swear this Kid is CIA Material, she Loves nothing more than being a Spy and doing covert reconnaissance Missions!
And the Young Prince Loves nothing more than spending all his Birthday and Pocket Money on any worthless crap priceless treasures that he'll promptly grow bored with and forget about in a minute and a half... *LOL* Note: Sparkly Flourescent Yellow Goop in a Canister is the devil!!! *Smiles* Hey, wait a minute, maybe that was the now grungy mysterious sticky substance all over the Table Tops and Coasters in yesterday's Post?!? *Things that make you go Humnnnnnnnnn...*
Blessings from the Arizona Desert... Dawn... The Bohemian