Wednesday 29 October 2014

What do you do to survive a heatwave? Drink coffee of course!

What a strange week we have had so far! On Monday the temperature reached 36C here in Toowoomba but I wasn't here to endure enjoy the heat as a friend and I travelled to Warwick to say goodbye to an old friend who was heading overseas so I escaped Toowoomba only to spend the day in 38C heat!!! Well, what was one to do to survive such extreme weather conditions...find an airconditioned cafe and just sit and drink coffee!


We met up at the Belle Vue Cafe in Palmerin Street (the main drag as it used to be called). This cafe has been around forever and we used to frequent it when we were teenagers during the bodgies and widgies period and there were drinks such as 'Bodgies Blood' on the menu. Bodgies Blood was a 1960's favourite drink which was a 'spider' made with cola and a couple of scoops of ice cream. We were very wild in those days :-) 


The decor at the Belle Vue Cafe is much the same as when I was a teenager and I am sure that I would have sat on those retro chairs back then although if they are the same ones they have certainly stood the test of time. After chatting for a couple of hours it was time for lunch so we gingerly headed outside into a very hot 38 degrees and quickly walked a couple of doors up to an airconditioned hotel for a counter lunch of fish and salad. When we were all talked out and had said our goodbyes to our friend for what may be three years or so, we headed home in an airconditioned car to a much cooler Toowoomba which had just had a short storm pass through. You can't beat the aircon during a heatwave. However, we just make do with fans in our house and it gets very hot.

 

Our house was like an oven and after I opened up every window and door to allow the cooler air to come inside I noticed a package sitting on the table and was pleasantly surprised to see it was my Down to Earth forum swap parcel. Sue had sent me a couple of beautifully embroidered birds for the Christmas tree, a teapot cosy with a couple of special tea bags and a lovely Friendship calendar. We have a number of swaps a year and it is always a nice surprise seeing what all the swap partners come up with. Everyone who wants to can join in whether they are particularly clever at craftwork or not.  


 Then it was time to venture outside to see if there had been any damage to the vegetables during the searing heat and I noticed that the beetroot which was near one of the Ollas was looking much happier ....


....than the beetroot which was at the end of the patch. So I promptly dug in another Olla around that area to provide water to the roots during the heat of the day.


I checked the guinea pigs as they had been in the shade all day but poor old Coco was really feeling the heat as she has longer hair than some of the other guinea pigs.



Yesterday it was supposed to be cooler but ended up reaching 35C so the mulberry ice cream I was going to make didn't happen as the kitchen was just too hot and even the outside of the fridge felt hot to the touch. It didn't help that someone who couldn't find any milk the night before decided to drink the cream I had bought to make the ice cream.

Talking about mulberries, Shiralee from Vintage Napery commented in my post It's Mulberry Season! that you can make ink from mulberries so I asked Mr.Google about that and found this article Making Ink From Berries if anyone would like to give it a try.



Next week my son and I head off to the beach while the CEO holds the fort and looks after the wildlife (and hopefully my vegetables) and I am so pleased that the day we travel the temps will be back to normal and ten to twelve degrees less than it has been this week.

Whatever happened to the nice cool Spring weather we used to have? How has Spring been where you live if you are in Australia and is your Autumn (Fall)  'normal' for readers in the Northern Hemisphere. I'm a bit over this heat and summer hasn't even arrived yet!





16 comments:

  1. Hasn't it been awful Chel? I am at Forest Springs full-time now and this week, has made me want to turn tail. haha. At least the nights are comfortable for sleeping not humid like they are down on the coast. I am envious of you going to Caloundra, I just love going there. We stay in a place on the Pumicestone Passage and I can sit all day watching all the activity on the water. Have a lovely stay.

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  2. Barb, I wish you could join us for our DTE catchup on the 6th. Our unit overlooks the passage and the pool is right beside the water so it should be lovely sitting there when the sun has gone down. Can you come to our final Simple Living workshop on the 15th Nov? Hope so.

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    1. Chel, I have a feeling I will have a house full of rellies that weekend, but if I'm wrong, I will be there.

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    2. That would be great if you could come, Barb.

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  3. Its a very nice 17 down here today but we have been all over the place from low 30's down to under 10. I was just explaining to the engineers that many of my Qld friends have lost the summer growing season because of the heat and lack of water. BUT, there's no such thing as climate change right?

    You sound like Tom and I. We trip around and hubby stays home (his choice).

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    1. Wow, 17 sounds good to me, Lynda. A cool breeze has started up so that is a relief. It looks like it is going to cool down next week when we head to the beach.

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  4. Years ago a teacher in college (OK many years ago) told me that the ancient Chinese drank hot drinks on hot days as it made the outside of your body feel cooler. I have never been sure that was true, but your post made me think of it! The beach is wonderful northern or southern hemisphere! Hope you have a wonderful time!

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    1. Kathy, that might be right. I rarely give up my cups of coffee. Probably addicted to caffeine :-)

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  5. When I was a child the 'hottest' drink at birthday parties was what we called 'Spoetnik' (pronounced as spootnick), which was made of cola, a spoonful of sugar (...:>)) and coffee milk / cream.

    We are rolling into colder days now, here in the northern hemisphere. Winter time with the clock set one hour back last weekend.
    Hope you'll have an enjoyable Summer.
    Cheers,

    Jeanneke.

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  6. Jenneke, you know I think I have heard of that drink. It is funny how even drink fashions change over the years. There are bushfires in our region at the moment so hopefully the forecast rain will eventuate at the weekend. I hope your winter isn't too harsh.

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  7. Nanna Chel,
    I was thinking about wanting a 'spider' today! The has been awful, I'm really dreading Summer. I just don't do well in the heat. I was joking to mum I moving to Tassie as they are having all the cold weather I like! Hope you enjoy your trip to Caloundra it's been a while since I lived there now in a little one bedroom flat right around the corner from the main shops. I miss the beach in this heat.
    -Shiralee.

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  8. Shiralee, perhaps it will be cooler in summer. It did cool down last summer after those dreadful 39.5C days. We always stay near the CBD when we go to Caloundra. I just park the car at the unit and we walk everywhere while we are there. This time we are at the end of the CBD and right on the water which will be lovely. There is a cool change coming on Monday....the day we leave. LOL!

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  9. Hi Chel,

    Mid 30's for us down here. No warning and bam it warmed up. I am a fan of hot weather.
    Love the color scheme in the diner. Have fun with your son at the beach!

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    1. That's pretty hot for you down there isn't it, Vicki? Much too hot for us as well as we aren't used to it.

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  10. Try adding a frozen water bottle to keep your guinea pigs cool, they will love you for it!

    x

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    Replies
    1. That's a good idea. Thanks Tania. The long haired guinea pigs really aren't liking this heat.

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