Mother Nature's Sweatshop

It's been a rough several days since I last posted - between the heat and the thunderstorms, its certainly been strange!  We've had several days of almost 100 degree temps, as well as several days with thunderstorms that have taken out electricity for over a hundred thousand at a time, damaged property (ancient trees uprooted onto vehicles; shingles flying, power lines down, etc.).  It's been a great time to stay indoors as much as possible (I was blessed to never have lost power beyond a flicker).

Unfortunately, I've REALLY missed the leisurely walks through parks and taking pictures.  So, today, given an opportunity to spend time with my favorite 15 year old niece AND make a short trip to one of the preserves we both like, I grabbed it with both hands!

I know I was just there, but we went to Charleston Falls.  The niece hadn't been there in a long time, so she was excited (well, as excited as a 15 year old gets about going to a nature preserve!) about going back.

We took the shady path, and it wasn't so bad at first, but by the time we got to the "falls" (such as they are right now), less than a 0.5 mile hike, I was sweating like crazy, and starting to overheat.  I was planning ahead however, and each of us had 32+ oz. bottles of water, and I'd been drinking it on the way.  I made sure I stopped and rested, but the problem was that I wasn't cooling off!

We watched the water drip for a few minutes from the viewing point almost level with the falls, then went down to where the "pool" is.

If you look really closely, you can see the water pool in the distance.

  

I liked watching the way the water splashed on the rocks and back into the pool.  I was hoping it would make me feel a bit cooler, but that didn't work out very well!

It's hard to tell, but the lighter colored areas are where the light is being reflected off the water pool.

I stood as still as possible for a while, doing my best to cool down and catch the breeze, but it just wasn't working.  I was just plain hot, and uncomfortable.  So, we headed back toward the car, with the idea that we'd stop at a bench I knew was on the way and rest until I was cooled down.

I don't think I ever really cooled down until we were back in air conditioning!  I'd been good about drinking my water the whole time, which I know helped.  Unfortunately, it was just not a good idea for me to be out in the heat.  My body is certainly making no secret of the fact it does NOT like the  elevated temperatures - the worst today was having no energy (I'm thankful for no headache!!).

But, even though today it felt like Mother Nature was running a sweatshop, I got to hang out with my favorite 15 year old niece AND get some nature pictures taken.  All in all, a spectacular day.