Heat! Wow, it is hot here. Yesterday it was 36 degrees in the shade. Today is not quite so warm, but still unbearable. I think about Attila working out in the sun all day. He is a cautious soul. He makes sure he has plenty to drink, and he knows about pacing himself for the long term. Yesterday he arrived home looking hot but not overtired. One of the fellows who works with him, who is half his age, worked to the point of feeling ill yesterday. Attila will not push himself beyond his limits, not for anyone. He gets just as much done by the end of the day.

This is our second heat wave. The first was quite a novelty, now the novelty has worn off. We do not have air conditioning, and I do not anticipate that we will be able to afford it in the foreseeable future. We must adjust our lifestyle accordingly.

A few of the measures I have implemented to cope with the heat are to shut the house up around nine a.m., closing all windows, blinds and draperies against the heat of the sun. This works amazingly well in keeping the temperature indoors from skyrocketing as the heat of the day sets in. The only heat producing appliances we allow to remain running during the day are the refrigerator and the freezer. I leave all lights turned off during the day. My only luxury item is the computer, which I have moved into the basement where the temperature is about ten degrees cooler.

Sleeping in the heat is another issue. Usually the heat prevents me from getting a good night's sleep. But this year it is Attila who suffers sleeplessness in the heat of the night. We tried sleeping in the basement, but neither of us was able to rest well there. Last night we left the house closed up until nine p.m., when the outside temperature finally dropped below the inside temperature. Then we stayed awake for hours with the fans running full tilt, to cool things down enough to sleep. In spite of all that effort and a late night, Attila had trouble sleeping. We will have to keep searching for solutions.

Cooking is a real no-no in the heat. Our solution? Attila uses a charcoal BBQ to grill a dozen hamburger patties and a dozen wieners at one firing. He freezes the cooked meat in one meal packages, reheats it in the microwave and presto! Nightly grilled hamburgers and hot-dogs. We add a green salad and are quite satisfied with the monotony, convenience and coolness.

As miserable as the heat is here, I can not help but think about how brutal it is for the homeless in the streets of Toronto, and anyone else who lives there without the luxury of air conditioning. I love Toronto, but right now I am truly grateful to be living in the bush where vegetation provides shelter from the suns rays, and the nearest pavement is beyond sight.

In spite of the heat we manage to accomplish little bits of work around the house. Attila has completed the task of stacking the remainder of the twenty cords of firewood. Now he is beginning to section and split the trees he felled earlier in the spring. I have been busy with repacking, and have finally begun to tackle the back kitchen. The back kitchen is where we piled everything that we did not know what to do with. Now, I am slowly organizing that space, sorting, discarding, and storing.

The yard is still a challenge. Last winter we had a wood heater installed, which we had started before we lost our jobs. It was not completed in time to provide us with any heat last winter, but this winter it will be good to go, and get a working out. The construction process left piles of material all over the yard. A pile of sand has to be moved to the back of the house, where we will store it for use in other projects. There is an incredible pile of wood chips where the firewood was dumped by the tractor trailer. I have been gathering that in baskets for use as kindling next winter. There are piles of concrete rubble to move somewhere, but we have not decided where as yet.

And, we have finally, at long last, completed our move. My little trailer had to stay behind in the city when we moved. We do not have a vehicle that will pull it, so we have been looking for help to get it here. We offered reasonable remuneration for the project, and a friend of Attila's offered to tow it for us with his truck. Two weeks ago it arrived. I haven't unlocked the door to peek in yet. That is another project altogether!

Luna and Janus are in England at the moment. Before they left, they flew up on Attila's birthday to have dinner with us. It was an unusual experience for us and a pleasant surprise. Janus is taking courses in England, and they are seriously considering emigration. I have mixed feelings about that. Terra and Lares are planning their wedding, but no date has yet been set. Lots of excitement for the young.