Its really really hot

July is almost the hottest month of the year here. August is worse because its more humid, but the weather has been steady around 110 F (42 C), and these temperatures will probably continue through August and September.

The temperature itself isn't really blog-worthy. Anyone can find out the current temperature in Doha just by looking online. So I'll try to explain to you some of the consequences of living in this climate, so you can see why I'm so excited at the possibility of rain while I'm on vacation next week.

The silver lining on the cloud of 110-plus temperatures is that I can't stand to be outside too long, so I haven't gotten sunburned yet, yay!

Its not very often in Pennsylvania that the weather outside is hotter than your body temperature. It can feel hot, but its nothing compared to when the wind hitting you is hotter than your skin. My pool is chilled, thank goodness, because the ones that aren't feel like bathwater. [Wow, how spoiled do I sound in that last sentence?]

The "cold" water containers are also on the roof of the apartment. With the 4:30am sunrise, that means that all your cold water is scalding by about 8:00am (think putting a bottle of water in your car in the middle of summer). The water usually cools off around 9:00pm, but don't even think about taking a shower in the middle of the day. Brushing your teeth can be done, but its pretty gross.

Forget about parking my black car outside.

The worst part of the summer temperatures is that my office is FREEZING. Apparently, someone decided that the hotter it gets outside, the colder they should make it inside. I think I'm down to about 55 degrees F in this damn office. Not only is it uncomfortable and inconvenient, let alone the fact that extreme temperature shifts can't be good for you, but we all look like jackasses sitting in our offices wrapped in blankets and sweaters.

So for those of you who have recently arrived in Doha or are due to get here soon, don't worry. Stick it out for awhile. October will be tolerable :-)

Travel and Leisure Magazine says you should visit me

Here's the article on all the cool stuff that Doha has (or will have) for tourists. It talks about the new museums and all the shopping, and then it also has pictures and mentions Education City and the new libraries, and other cultural stuff they're building.

Happy 4th of July! Enjoy your barbecues, baseball, fireworks, and all that other good American stuff :-)

"Caryl's Kennel" continues

Don't worry, Marjorie and Justin. Tribble the cat is in good (and increasingly qualified) hands while you're in Gabon.

In other news, I finally planned a vacation! Which means if I had a pet, I would need someone else to take care of it. Well, I suppose I will need to find someone who can feed Mr. Fish. Any of the people I've been pet-sitting for want to step up?? :-)

In case you're wondering, my vacation is to London for a weekend, and then Paris for the week. Yay!