I'm trying to think cool thoughts. The Olympic swimming pool looks awfully inviting, although the weightlifting and basketball they were showing all day didn't do much for me. I think it's the last few days of winter Down Under, but I don't believe it's winter as we know it. So I won't be heading to Sydney for relief from the heat.

I wonder if knowing exactly how hot it is makes it worse. Probably not, because I had no clue. I believed it was over 100°F, but I had no proof. I didn't check the local news on radio or TV, where I'm sure the heat was the lead story. It got a big headline in this morning's paper, where the prediction was 102°F. The record for this date is 104°F, set in 1919.

An outdoor thermometer would take some of the guesswork out of it, but I don't own one. And on a day like this, I'm not sure I want one.

My lone foray into the afternoon sun was a hike to the end of my driveway, to pick up the mail. That might have been a mistake, since I'd been fairly productive up until that time. After my walk, I was depleted. I spent the rest of the day immobile on the couch with both fans pointed at me, one from the side and one from above.

Since there was no air but hot air in the house, the fans didn't provide much actual relief. Circulated hot air is probably a smidge better than deathly still hot air. With its picture windows on all walls and skylight above, my house was taking on the characteristics of an Easy Bake oven, with the same effect. I was roasted and toasted in the discomfort of my own home.

Now, I know I have no right to complain about two or three unbearably hot days, even if they're stifling enough to make me physically ill. No right whatsoever. Especially since the fog will be back by Thursday or Friday. Knowing I have no more than a few days to endure this should be a comfort, but when I'm writhing in agony, I'm not thinking I have much chance to survive that long.

Then, when six o'clock comes and it's cool enough to go outside and water the yard, I have to shake my head at my own weakness. It will cool down enough to sleep tonight; there are places that don't have that luxury for months at a time. No, I have no right to complain.

Stay tuned, though. Tomorrow is predicted to be even hotter.

On days like this, the weeds around my house and garage seem even higher and drier.

When I came in from watering, I spent the next twenty minutes picking stickers out of my socks. I'm afraid I'm not fully committed to gardening excellence. At this point, a third of what I water is already dead, and another third should be.

And all those bugs out there!

But I can't let these hot days suck all the life out of the garden, so I'll be out there as often as I have to, for as long as I can last.