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stgulik ([personal profile] stgulik) wrote2011-08-09 09:58 pm
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Like walking underwater in a garbage bag

That was my impression when we stepped off the plane in Charleston. Boy, it only takes a few years away to forget the hideous discomfort that only West Virginia's humidity can bring. But the one-minute walk from the airport terminal to Dad's car brought it allll back.

Other things I'd forgotten about West Virginia:
  • When you sit in groups of five or more, somebody always brings up the "dew point." During our visit, the dew point reached 78. This is trouble because, at 80, the air is so wet that fish in the ponds get confused and swim straight out of the water and start flying through the air. Don't get me wrong; them fish is good eatin', but they tend to splat against the windshield. (Okay, I made this up. Most of it.)

  • The locals know a damn sight better than to go outside in the humidity, thank you very much. We rented a pontoon boat so we could putter around a lake for a few hours, and we saw NOBODY. Just a few isolated campers who were probably tourists like us. It was odd. I'm used to life on the West Coast where, if a lake like that had 2,000 boats roaring around, we'd be marveling at how deserted it was.

  • The local paper runs a column called "Garden of the Month." Families work hard to win this honor and have their gardens featured. Competition can be fierce. There was a joke in there somewhere about unusual fertilizer and the mysterious disappearance of rivals, but I did not dare reach for it.

[identity profile] sandlappershell.livejournal.com 2011-08-10 05:21 am (UTC)(link)
Come on down to SC! I'll see your extreme humidity and raise you extreme humidity x 2!! When it is almost 80* at midnight and the dew point drops to 70* because of the sudden electrical storm, it is time to find a chunk of ice to recline on!! Hope you have a marvelous, not too soggy time in WVa!

[identity profile] bonsaibetz.livejournal.com 2011-08-10 05:51 am (UTC)(link)
I don't do regional saunas. When i was 14, I got shipped off to my grandmothers for two weeks in June, to Venice, FL (next to Sarasota). Eww. I was thin and young and I was in perpetual melt mode. No A/C at grandma's was awful. I'm such a California girl. I need low humidity. My grandmother had a shower outside because if you showered inside, the bathroom would never dehumidify. And you had to shower in the middle of the day so your hair dried before bed. If you go to bed with wet hair, the pillow will mildew.

My deepest sympathies.

Hurry back to our dry state.

[identity profile] teddyradiator.livejournal.com 2011-08-10 12:23 pm (UTC)(link)
Well, darlin' welcome back to the South. I'm hoping the wine there is at least the right colour.

Your title reminded me of the first time I went to visit my Uncle in New Orleans. I grew up in SC, and it's muggy here, but I had never felt such humidity. I remember getting out of the car on the ferry and thinking I'd just had hot wet wool slapped over my face. Never had anything like it.

I hope the rest of your holiday is fun. I've missed you around, kiddo. Lots to tell when you return!

[identity profile] rivertempest.livejournal.com 2011-08-10 12:26 pm (UTC)(link)
Ugh. Double UGH. Since I neighbor West Virginia, I understand about the humidity.

And the pontoon boats. Garrison Keillor anyone?

And the rabid families that use rival losers as fertilizer. ;)

[identity profile] justpinkpastel.livejournal.com 2011-08-10 05:40 pm (UTC)(link)
That sounds absolutely awful. We get our fair share of humidity here in the Midwest, but from the sounds of it, nothing like West Virginia, thank goodness.
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[personal profile] arcanetrivia 2011-08-10 07:22 pm (UTC)(link)
Ugh. That's why I stick to my beloved west coast and avoid, oh, east of the Rockies as much as possible. ;)

[identity profile] beffeysue.livejournal.com 2011-08-10 10:10 pm (UTC)(link)
LOL! Love the story of the flying fish! I live in the same state as Sandlapper and Teddy, and I agree with them about the heat and humidity of our fair state. From mid-July to mid-September, I do everything I can to avoid the out of doors. It feels like it's a hundred and twenty in the shade and there ain't no shade.

Glad your trip to WVa was a winner, and glad you're back in your more comfy home.