Summer has not been kind to this part of the country....Cool weather, lots of rain and very little sun does not for happy Manitobans make. We need our hot, humid summers to make our cold and fierce winters bearable. The thought of sitting on a patio on a hot summer night in late July is the only real memory that sustains us during a brilliantly cold week in early February....but I digress.
We crave the heat and I am a sun-seeker. I like to sit at the beach from morning until late afternoon, reading magazines and a book, eating snacks and people watching. I like the warmth on my skin and the feel of the gritty sand between my toes. However, spending the day at the beach also brings a few concerns....
I once had sun stroke after a friend's birthday party. I had been outside since early in the morning, playing outside with my brother. Then, I spent the hot afternoon playing outside at the birthday party. I was six years old. I came home from the party feeling very strange. I don't remember much except lying on the couch feeling sick and my mom saying that she should have paid a little more attention to how much water I was drinking, etc etc.
So now I have to be careful. Have I put on enough sunscreen? Should I go into the shade? Will my hat be sufficient?? Am I drinking enough water?? Is this feeling of tiredness accompanied by nausea?? Am I feeling sick?? Did I eat enough today?? Is this granola bar going to sustain me?? Should I have brough more food?? Should I go home?? Will I be okay to drive?? Do I have a sunburn?? Will it blister?? I haven't had a bad sunburn since I was 15, will this bring on sunsickness??
Of course, it doesn't prevent me from actually going to the beach! Only clouds and rain can do that:)
