"Did you eat too much while you were in the Tetons, Jim?"
No, but thanks for asking. One thing I was missing while we were on this last trip: a pair of hiking boots. I don't need serious hiking boots, but occasionally, I want something with a stiffer sole than my "trail ready" hiking sneakers (my name for them).
I have wide feet. Double E. Wider on some shoe/boot styles. Until I discovered Skechers, shoe shopping was mostly an exercise in frustration. Skechers are not high quality shoes, like SAS... but, they do have styles in wide (and extra wide) widths. Not a lot, but enough. Their shoes are mostly light weight (due to the materials they use), and that is a plus, too. And, that "Slip-In" feature.
Joan suggested that "today would be a good day" for getting out for some shoe shopping. It's hot again (94º when I got up at 6:30 this morning), so an air conditioned ride to the Skechers Store, then out for lunch. I'm in.
We left the house around 11:30. Once at the Skechers Store, Joan helped me pick out some styles to try, then went off to find herself a pair of sneakers. I was delighted to have various styles to pick from. I actually quite enjoyed this experience, after decades of having shoe salespeople shake their heads and look down at my fat feet.
These (above) are casual shoes that aren't sneakers. And, they fit! A pair of hiking(ish) boots. They had some actual hiking boots in my size, but they would have rubbed my ankles raw. The pair I got are a bit shorter, but have soft padding around the ankle area. A pair of sneaker(ish) shoes, and another pair like what I have with the stiffer sole, but in a different color.
I am good on shoes now for a long while. Joan got a pair of sneakers. She is fortunate to have a size and width foot that allows her to shop in any shoe store.
Lunch afterwards at BJ's. Insert your favorite BJ's joke here. The food was good and their lunch specials include a mini Pazookie. Who doesn't like that?
--------
It's official. We are now in "Monsoon Season."
"What is Monsoon Season - is it like Hurricane Season?" From the NWS:
The key take-away for that paragraph above is "increased humidity." So, all that crap you hear about "It's a dry heat," is out the door. It's now a humid heat. Fun. Or, as I like to refer to it: Swamp-Ass Season. I assume no further explanation is necessary.
In a surprising bit of weather, it was 97º at 6:00pm (12º cooler than yesterday at this time). Cool enough to take Murphy out in the courtyard. He and I saw these things...
For those not into this desert weather phenomenon, those are called... clouds. Not the usual cloudless blue sky that comes with "dry heat." These would indicate higher humidity. And, the earlier mentioned: swamp ass.
Joan and I were talking today: I was lamenting about not liking the the heat here. She feels it is better than the heat and humidity in the Tropical Tip. I don't agree. On the Texas coast, I could still get in a bicycle ride, then get out on a motorcycle or scooter before retreating to the air conditioning. Here in Arizona, I feel it is too hot this time of year. In Texas, we didn't have daily news reports about people out hiking needing to be rescued due to heat exhaustion. To be fair, that may be because people in the Tropical Tip go to the beach instead of hiking in the mountains. Probably because there are no mountains in the Tropical Tip. And people don't "hike." I think it might be because it rarely gets above 92 or 93º in south coastal Texas, even though the humidity is higher (OK, much higher) than in Arizona.
Or, it may be that we always got out of south Texas in the hottest months. Getting out of Arizona on this last trip was a refreshing change. But... we're back. 😣 And now, at 6:45pm, there is rain just east of us, and blowing dust where we are. A 60% chance of rain now in the next few hours and gusty winds. Some parts of the Valley are getting significant rain. I went out and put away chair cushions that aren't under covers. It's coming.
No comments:
Post a Comment