Heat Days

This article was an interesting read as “heat days” had become a national phenomenon back when I lived in Melbourne, Australia.
Going to an all boys private school, I was required to wear a stringent school uniform. So when our parents were notified that we were
allowed to attend the school week, in tank tops and board shorts; I was one of the first to celebrate. Little did I know, how hot our school would actually get. Our school is over 150 years old, so much of the infrastructure is heritage listed… this means many of my classrooms didn’t have air conditioning. This would pose an issue when temperatures would reach over 40 degrees (104 degrees Fahrenheit) as kids started to faint, metal structures began to crack and collapse due to temperature expansions and my state had limited water supply due to an ongoing drought. It became too hot to even stay at school wearing minimal clothing, so to our parents relief, school was cancelled the week that followed until further notice (until the heat wave subsided). That week off school was the best; non stop swimming and icy poles. Heat waves are great when you have nothing to do but float in a pool donut… It actually became so hot I climbed on my roof with a water bottle as to not burn my timid feet and fried an egg. However, let it be known, to my dismay, my mother was not impressed…