[SxC97]

I live in Houston currently and the heat is absolutely oppressive. Most days going outside feels like exploring Arrakis. It’s dangerous to go outside while the sun is out, lest you spontaneously combust.

It’s steadily been getting worse, year after year, but this summer is the worst I’ve ever experienced.

I’ve already decided this is the last summer I’ll spend here. If I don’t land an in person job here in the next few months, I’m packing up and going to Denver or Seattle.

[gnulinux]

This summer in Boston has been the coolest summer I ever experienced in my life (colder than last 4 summers in Boston) including 3 summers I spent in SF (which, as the famous joke goes, are colder than its winters). So, maybe Boston is a good option for our climate change future?

NYC this summer was disgustingly hot though! So maybe this Boston thing is a random statistical anomaly.

[azemetre]

Do we live in the same city? The last few weeks has had multiple days over 90 degrees, with a very minor respite when it rains. We haven't even hit August yet (which is typically way hotter than July).

Also FWIW, the entire New England area may be prone to forest fires as bad as the west coast if the region continues to dry out. There is no management of brush in Maine or Vermont or New Hampshire (or even Canada for that matter).

You also can't exactly predict the effects of climate change on regions. I don't think anyone ever thought Washington or Oregon state would experience 24+ hour 100 degree heats during the summer, but they did and will likely experience it again in the future.

[gnulinux]

There definitely were warm days, but I think overall it was a cold summer, coldest I personally experienced. I've been in Boston since 2018. E.g. night were quite windy and cold, also it rained quite a bit. It was a chilly, windy, wet summer, which is something I enjoyed. It was extremely easy to cool my house down, only worked the AC at the worst of the heat at Eco mode.

[gottorf]

> So, maybe Boston is a good option for our climate change future?

Unlikely, given that places nearer to the poles have experienced greater variations. But I don't think Boston is at existential risk or anything like that, with ample water sources and enough elevation aside from a few places.

It will be a fantastic place for HVAC contractors over the next few decades. Not enough homes have AC (and the ones that do are underpowered), and there's a huge imbalance of tradespeople vs. PMC-type people, so the former will be able to command much higher rates.

[reaperman]

I grew up in northern US, then used to live in Saudi Arabia / UAE and now I live in Houston. Honestly Houston just feels "warm" to me now, even on the hottest days. The "Khaleeji" GCC area of the Persian gulf is just so, so, so much worse. Even New Orleans felt just a touch worse to me than Houston, but neither compare to Qatar/UAE/the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.

I often jog or bicycle 3 miles to work in Houston during the summer and enjoy plenty of daytime outdoor activities in my late 30's.

[gottorf]

Before my first visit to the Emirates, I made the (what seemed to me) reasonable assumption that it was a dry heat, since sand dunes are literally right next to the city. Boy, was I wrong about that one.

[HeyLaughingBoy]

I don't know how you guys live there and I grew up in tropical South America!

I had a stopover in Houston coming from Anchorage to MSP. It was 90+ degrees and humid as hell in the airport at 6AM

Never again!

[gottorf]

> in the airport

How was it so unpleasant indoors?!

[nocoiner]

Unrelated to climate, but speaking of unpleasantness indoors, the Houston airport authorities decided to let a barbecue restaurant open in the middle of the newest, nicest terminal at IAH, with smoke pits and all. It smells strongly of smoked meat 24 hours a day (or so I assume, as someone who has been in that terminal at both 2 am and at noon in the last few weeks). It’s completely intolerable and frankly kind of disgusting.

And I say this as someone who loves BBQ! It’s just too much, too soon, as soon as you step off the plane. I can’t imagine spending a long layover there.

[HeyLaughingBoy]

Damned if I know! I just remember thinking that if it was this bad inside, how much worse it had to be outside.