Swoosh.

What made me happy today? Swoosh.
There's a storm coming. Not a big one, but the winds can get to reasonably high speeds. Fast enough to pick something up.
Like the porta potty at the construction site right across from where I live. I was in the kitchen, making dinner, when I suddenly heard this scraping noise followed by a swoosh and a bang. First I thought it was an accident, but it turns out the wind blew the porta potty right into the street. It nearly hit my car.
Good thing it didn't, but more importantly: nobody got hurt! The street was empty when it blew onto it. And with the help of two neighbors the porta potty is back where it belongs.
Let's hope it stays there, and that this storm won't cause too much damage!

Storms that pass in the night

What made me happy today? Storms that pass in the night.
It's been storming here since yesterday evening. I love storms! The way the clouds are so many different shades of grey, whipping past at high speeds, the colourfull leaves flying by and how the trees bend in the wind.
Of course, storms can do a lot of damage. So far, we've been pretty lucky here, apart from a few trees and some traffic signs, not much else was damaged.
Except for my circadian rhythm. The clock was turned back an hour yesterday, and that's messing with my internal clock. Add the noisy storm to that, and I decided to put in earplugs, in order to be able to sleep. And sleep I did. I even slept through my alarm because it only went off once. Good thing I always wake up early, and that I work flex-time :-)
So storms are pretty, and my internal clock woke me up pretty much on time! Plus, I had a super-productive day at work. I guess I escaped this week's case of the Mondays ;-)

Hoodie

What made me happy today? Hoodie!
Ah, it's fall. The leaves are changing colour, there's more rain, the mornings are colder. Which means it's time to break out the hoodies again! I love hoodies! They're warm, comfortable, make me happy and are just awesome.
I usually change into one after I get home :-)

This is my favorite hoodie:

And hoodies are great in situations like this! I was eating a sandwich while on vacation in the Ardennes. BF managed to get a hold of my iPod and started annoying me with it. I used my hoodie to hide :-)

"Stop taking pictures of me!"

"No? Okay, well, then I'll hide!"

Hot hot hot

What made me happy today? It's hot hot hot!
Oh my, it's 35°C in the sun outside. In the shade it's around 28°C-29°C, and in my apartment it's about 26°C.
I'm lucky enough to work in an office with air conditioning and indoor parking. That's got me covered for most of the day!
But what do you do when you don't have these luxuries? Well, here's a few tips and tricks I've learned over the years:

- if you have blinds or curtains where you live, make sure to close them when the sun is shining on that side of your residence.
- keep the windows closed during the day, open them during the night.
- drink plenty of water.
- anything with mint in it will make you feel refreshed in an instant.
- dress light, and keep what you wear to a bare minimum. If this is possible of course, I have a dress code at work, so I wear more than I'd like.
- take a shower. Or get a cheap spray bottle, fill with water and mist yourself with it.
- eat less, but more frequently. Instead of hot foods, try lighter summer fare including frequent small meals or snacks containing cold fruit or low fat dairy products. As an added benefit, you won't have to cook next to a hot stove.
- spicy foods and warm drinks. I know this seems counter-intuitive, but they'll make you sweat. And when your sweat evaporates, you'll feel cooler.
- think cool thoughts. Focusing on how hot it is will only make you feel warmer.
- avoid any strenuous activities, if possible.
- stay in the shade if you can. If not, make sure to wear sunscreen, and regularly re-apply it.
- still too hot? Go see a movie! Most movie theaters have air conditioning. So do lots of shops!
- store lotions or cosmetic toners in the refrigerator.
- keep plastic bottles of water in the freezer; grab one when you're ready to go outside. As the ice melts, you'll have a supply of cold water with you.
- avoid caffeine and alcohol as these will promote dehydration.
- use your common sense!

Hope this helps you stay cool :-)

Saturday sun

What made me happy today? Enjoying the Saturday sun.
We're finally having some great weather here! It's about time too. I enjoyed the nice weather today while going for my daily Saturday morning coffee :-)
There were a lot of people out and about, so I guess I'm not the only one taking advantage of the nice weather!