Don't Just Sweat, Be Smart About the Summer Sizzle

Office people, listen up.  Although I am a college-educated man in his early 30's, who works in what's called a professional industry in that "white collar" sense, I am a guy who must cope through one cantankerous summer season after another.  And this is Texas; it's like this every year.

I sympathize with construction workers, street repair crews, caretakers of lawns and anyone else who must be outside during the hottest parts of the day.  I, too, have to endure the endless heat, the rising temperatures, and the excessive sweating, all while wearing long sleeves, a tie, sometimes a suit coat and wool suit pants.  Even Spider-Man must do it, and he's got crime to fight!

But for all the woes of a weather situation we'd rather not succumb to, there is some bright news.  Take the month of August off!  Make flip flops mandatory during the summer months.  Cart a snow cone machine with you and name the flavors after all your favorite indoor-working friends.

Honestly, you can't do any of those things.  But you can compromise and hydrate yourself thoroughly throughout the day.  Make it a point to cool off often by sitting down in the shade, nearest building with a lobby or car with the cold AC cranked.  For the love of pete, crack your car windows when you're not inside and never ever leave a child or pet inside a car when you have an errand to run.  It's not worth it, even if you're gone for only a minute.

Summertime affords us the opportunity to vacation, enjoy the beautiful rivers and lakes, and take time to get outside and soak up some vitamin D.  But do it wisely and the weather will change before you know it.  (Well, it is Texas, but it's bound to change at some point).

Pet of the Week: Duke Needs a Home

Duke, the basketball team, is the popular team that just won the NCAA Final Four, earning the title of National Champions.  Duke defeated a lesser known team, Butler, by a narrow margin Monday night.  Duke's win over Butler is another reason why the Duke program has so many fans and support from across the country.

But another Duke, this time the dog, is hoping he will be just as popular with people of central Texas as he looks for a new home.

Duke is up for adoption through Austin Pets Alive!, which is an organization that works tirelessly to find pets good homes.  It advocates for animals just like Duke who are perfectly adoptable, but often may need special care because of previous conditions.

On its web site, Austin Pets Alive! explains that Duke almost had no hair when volunteers first met him because of a condition called entropian.  This caused his eyelids to roll in and his lashes to scrape against his eyes every time he blinked.  Doctors operated on his eyelids through a surgery, and now all of his hair has grown back because of a hypo-allergenic diet.

Be sure to check out Duke, and the video below, because he's in need of a home... no, a family... to love him and care for him like he deserves.