Seriously Hot

So, I knew that moving to the northern half of the county meant we'd have high temperatures, and I tried to prepare myself mentally. But this week's temps were "unseasonably high," according to our local weatherman. "Ridiculously high," would be my choice of words.
At 4:50 p.m. Tuesday it was ACTUALLY 108 in Creston (103 in the shade of our north-facing front porch). Wednesday, it was again 103 on the front porch. Today, they're looking at 102. I'm really looking forward to Saturday, when all this is supposed to break, and Sunday when it's "only" going to be in the 80s.

I'm not big on heat, but the tomatoes are. And (touch wood) the rodents don't seem all that into the tomatoes (heirlooms) I've planted. The last round of peppers I planted lasted 'til the sulphur-stinkin' rodent repellent wore off (about 6 days, and I was on a weekly spray schedule).

So, how do we beat the heat? We don't. This morning, I arose early to enjoy the fantastic morning temperatures (mid-60s) while I took care of releasing the chickens (minus one we lost to the coyotes last week), riding two horses and squirrel hunting (no dice today - even the squirrels were too hot to come out this morning). Back inside by 9:30 for the day. We MAY trek the 9 miles into town for a dip in the community pool which is wonderfully clear, cool and clean. Or we may get some work done around the house - or even play a game!