Unrelenting

When we moved here, we knew we'd face a summer heat wave.  Neither of us expected what's turned into a summer heat tsunami.  We are setting records and the heat is relentless day and night.  I've resorted to putting a Shamwow like towel in my pocket every time I step outdoors.  I've walked ten minutes to a shop only to be asked by the shopkeeper if I came in from a run.  I meet a friend down at the track for morning runs on occasion.  We moved it up to 6:00am in an attempt to beat the heat the other day.  After a 2.5 mile run down to the track and only 2 miles on the track, I drank an entire Camelbak (nearly half gallon) of water and two bottles of rehydrating drink only to return home so dehydrated and sapped of energy I drank three more bottles of water, took an hour nap and still wasn't right.  It is STUPID HOT!  It's showers per day = # of times outdoors + 1 hot.

So today is record day number 35 of the temperature exceeding 35C (95F) and there is no end in sight.  We're forecasted to continue the streak as far out as CNN and The Weather Channel forecast.  Sounds bad enough, but this does not tell the whole story.  This record is reported to us by CNN Hong Kong which seems to be getting it's weather data from the China government. You see, I reckon of the 35 consecutive days over 35C, we've likely exceeded 40C (104F) the last 20+ consecutive days.  We're regularly hitting "feels like" 113F with the humidity according to The Weather Channel.  So you ask, what is the record for consecutive days over 40C and have we broken it?

When temperatures reach 38C in China, construction workers and the like are to cease work.  That seems like a lot of lost work you're thinking.  Well, not so much.  Funny thing here in China, we don't seem to recognize temperatures over 37C.  If you have a China weather app, 37C is the max temperature you'll see on it for any China city.  And all those publicly displayed thermometers that perhaps can't be as easily controlled, none of them work anymore.  So work continues as the magic bubble ensures our maximum temperature never exceeds 37C, but it sure feels way hotter.