What’s on Jen’s mind today? Well, it’s hot out- but it’s nice and cool in here! The heat got me thinking however about years and years…and years…ago I used to live in Dayton, Ohio in a house with no a/c. I was young- only about 21- but I remember it well. It was a big, old, two story house and I lived on one half of the double with my sister and another gal. Let me tell you, summertime in Dayton is a lot like it is here- when it gets hot, it gets hot and muggy. It gets hard to breathe, and walking into that house was like walking into an oven in the summertime. I do remember it was exceptionally cheap, probably because no one wants to live in Dayton, Ohio. Don’t know if you’ve ever been to Dayton- and in fairness I haven’t been back there in 20 years, but it’s not the nicest city in the States. It does have one of the best sub houses I’ve ever been to- the Submarine house. I’m not even the biggest fan of philly cheese steaks but theirs is the bomb! They have this pepper relish they use on them that is amazing. And these cheese stuffed potato bite things that are so good. If you ever go to or through Dayton for any reason I would definitely recommend stopping in- and maybe grab an extra one for me on your way back! Back to living with no a/c- I have a few tips for anyone without a/c in this heat. We used to get big bowls of ice and put them in front of a fan, then blow the fan on the ice and sit in chairs around it and voila! A little homemade a/c! But what works even better is getting your feet cold. We would get big pots/bowls and fill them with ice water and then set our feet in those and it really works wonders to cool you down. Finally, ice on the under sides of your wrist and washcloths dipped in ice water on the back of your neck. Ok- I know I said finally, but I just thought of one more- sit in front of a fan and rub or spray water on yourself. The water evaporating off your skin will cool you significantly. Hopefully most everyone has a/c, but for those of you who don’t, there are a few pointers.
When I lived in Colorado it wasn’t uncommon for the places I lived not to have a/c. Up in the mountains in Colorado it can still get pretty warm during the day, but the evenings always cool down. Plus the lack of humidity makes the heat much more tolerable. I was surprised when I went to prison that we had a/c in there. I honestly just assumed prison wouldn’t have a/c- thankfully I was wrong. The prison I went to was actually pretty nice, much nicer than I expected. Of course, it was a prison camp- meaning lowest level security- it was actually the same prison Martha Stewart went to. Odd thing about the federal prison system is I actually got to request what prison I wanted to go to. When my lawyer told me that, I went home and Googled “What is the nicest federal women’s prison in the United States.” Two places kept popping up no matter how I phrased it- one in Alderson, WV and one in Bryant, TX. Since I didn’t think prison was going to have a/c, WV was the obvious choice.
I must apologize, I realize this is a very random blog today. The problem is, I have something on my mind that I can’t really talk about. I can’t even give out any more hints than that because it’s not my place to talk about. However- it’s what I’m thinking about so I’m struggling to concentrate on something else inspiring to write about. It’s funny how so many of us go about our days acting as if nothing is bothering us, and yet in the quiet of our minds we are concerned about something we can’t really talk about. I guess maybe that’s what I’m supposed to say today- remember that while you are out in the world, you never know what someone else is going through. A couple of years ago I had double booked myself accidentally, and when the client who got there second found out I had to reschedule he lost his shit. He started yelling at me, calling me names, even threw something. His reaction startled the other lady working with me and she started to yell back- but I told her to stop. I let him have his fit and then I just calmly said, “You’re having a bad day, aren’t you?” He looked a little surprised and then said, “Yeah, I am…Sorry about that.” He left, and my coworker looked at me and said, “I don’t see how you could let someone talk to you like that!” She was fired up and ready for a fight. I just said, “His reaction was so out of proportion to having to reschedule, I figure he must be having a really bad day. I don’t know why, not my business. Maybe he just found out he has cancer…maybe he just had to put his dog to sleep..hard saying. But he was obviously mad about a lot more than this appointment, and sometimes people just snap.” Now, I’m no doormat, I’ll stand up for myself when need be…but sometimes it’s not about me. Sometimes there’s a much bigger demon being fought, and just letting someone vent is what they need. So maybe keep that in mind. Try and have empathy for people, let things slide sometimes. Lets give each other some grace today- especially in this heat, tempers can flare. Remember, people hide their pain and worry, but sometimes it sneaks out. Until next time- Peace out.
