How to get a low-cost A/C unit and other help from LADWP to beat the next heat wave
For the past two weeks, I’ve been sitting, cooling my body with an electric blanket plugged into the wall, with the air conditioners in my living room on maximum. The thermostat has been set to 82 degrees Fahrenheit in my apartment. With most of the windows open and the sun shining, it’s pleasant, but not like being in the shade.
In the month that I’ve been living this way, it’s been as hot as it has in Washington state, and that makes it even more unpleasant. So I decided to take action.
If it’s July, you’ve got to admit that “pounding the pavement” isn’t necessarily the first choice of action to take. But in the summer, I’ll admit that the only way I can stay cool is by keeping my body working. I have to wear my sunscreen. I have to drink water. And I have to get up early to go to work and then, finally, to sleep.
When I started out working in the building trades, I remember thinking of summer months as some kind of vacation. I didn’t expect to be living a normal life in the summer, but I never expected that I would need to, and be spending so much of it outside.
So I had to think of things that could help me to beat the heat. First, I was thinking of some heat-protecting things to wear, but then I realized that this really isn’t much different from wearing a hat. Or, at least, it was until I tried walking in the heat, and realized that I could go for an hour without hearing the high-pitched whine of my hair dryer.
And then I started to think in terms of things that could help with comfort. I think in my case, it’s important to go into the heat with a plan.
The heat is