Back of my neck gettin' dirty & gritty

By Jamie

Yeah I got that song in my head....Hot town summer in the city, back of my neck gettin' dirty & gritty". 

I feel like I've been a trooper with this whole bus thing.  I only give myself one drive in a week (but happily accept an occasion ride from my hubby or Liz) and I'm usually pretty good.  I have taken a positive attitude and really on a scale of 1-10 I give bus riding a 8, maybe 8.5.   It saves a ton of money, is good for the ol' mother earth (lord knows I find plenty of ways to increase my almighty "foot print") and isn't difficult (at first I wrote easy, but lets not go that far!).  But some days I'm over it!

Today was one of them.  What was the culprit?  Those who live in Seattle might be able to guess.  Heat.  Today it was 87 degrees.  I'm a heat weenie.  But like me there are a lot Seattleites that feel the same way.  We are the kings and queens of fleece, Gore-Tex and the all important skill of layering.  What happens when you reach you're final layer and you're still hot?   Not to mention I don't have a ton of those clothes that are "work appropriate", in fact I probably have 2 outfits I feel public appropriate.  

First, the wait.  Lucky for me there is a shade tree that I can take refuge in for the 10 or less minutes I wait for the bus.  It’s nice, but I don’t get a chance to cool down…I just don’t get much hotter.  I can only imagine what that 10 minutes will feel like on the upcoming day which is forecasted to be 95 (and thank goodness I’ll be on a little vaca, so imagine is all I’ll have to do with this heat wave).  Then it’s on to the bus.  Only 30% of KC Metro Buses are air conditioned, but apparently since 2000 all new orders for buses include a/c.  I’ve noticed that the coaches on my route are generally older (not old), so generally no a/c…I know, I know, it’s only a real problem maybe 10 days out of the year.  I take my seat at the front of the bus and try to read and ignore the sun blazing through the window.  And on hot days I’m a skirt/dress wearer. So all you ladies know what that means.  Yup, them backs of my thighs get nice and sweaty pressed up against the plastic seat (which, btw, there is a song by Southern Culture on the Skids called, what else “Plastic Seat Sweat” and it pretty much nails it!).  Which means that I get the oh so pleasant RRRRRRIIIIIIIPPPPPP as I try to gracefully stand up and my skin wants to stay with the plastic. 

How good does this look.  And for the record my adorable bulldog is afraid of ice, so this is not her:)

 Hot bus rides wipe me out.  I will drive on any 90+ days, I’ll even park in the lot that cost $1 more a day because I know my car will be in the shade after about 12pm.  Whether you love this hot weather or hate it…stay cool!