Summer is here in Miami, and that means that most people who own an AC have it turned on high. The temperature is 80 degrees and will soon reach the 90s. I love the heat so I'm not bothered by it, what bothers me are the people in public places like malls, and offices who blast the AC without any consideration for those of us who don't like cold temperatures. Lanta loves the AC, but I could easily do without it, so we compromise. The AC only gets turned on for part of the day. Fortunately we have a balcony, so I can sit outside if I'm feeling cold, but if I'm sick or feeling too cold, Lanta turns off the AC for me. Not only do I have to deal with the AC problem, but nasty BO and SAS (summer ass syndrome) is also a year round problem down here in the south, when there's lots of heat and humidity it causes certain people who don't wash themselves properly to stink like fucking crazy. Sometimes I'm tempted to hand these fuckers a bar of Irish Spring and hope that they get the message.

Lanta is a southern boy, born in Atlanta, Georgia and raised in Miami, Florida. I'm a northern girl, I may have been born in Canada, but I'm still a southern girl at heart, I love living in Miami, and despite the high rates of poverty and crime, I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. The weather is amazing all year round. We do have hurricanes, but the last major hurricane (Cat 3 or higher) was Hurricane Andrew in August of '92. I often tell Lanta that even though his parents are from SL, there's no way in hell he would be able to live there. I don't think I could either, because even though I love heat and humidity, I do have my limits, and SL is just too fucking hot. When I go over there, even I need AC. It's funny how Americans, and other Westerners have become dependant on AC, most of us these days can't live without it. It's hard to imagine what people did before AC was invented. I don't understand it, America and other Western countries are not even that hot, even in the summer.

On those rare instances when I'm feeling hot, I simply take a cold shower and allow my body to dry under a ceiling fan, or I head to the beach if I have time. People underestimate the power of a simple electric fan. However, Lanta argues that it merely circulates the hot air and does nothing to cool him. For me, the best thing to do on a hot summer day is chill on the beach with my girls and sit out on the balcony with Lanta munching on fried chicken and laughing at the crackheads and idiots walking down below.