It's Summer

​7:00 A.M. and the sun is already hot
and you can't bare to bathe its fiery heat
even for one moment
that you have to take some shelter or shade.

The fiery heat of the summer afternoon sun in Cebu City, Philippines on March 25, 2017.

​It's summer already
and it's gonna be very uncomfortable at home
from morning all the way up to the night.
Longer use of fans and aircons
will be common this time
giving you higher electric bills.
Your water bills too will go up
because you'll stay longer in the shower.
And your appetite will go more
for cold bites and drinks
straight from the fridge.
And when you're living in the city,
with the hassles of traffic and all,
you can't help but give yourself a break
by going away for some pool or beach
or even to some park with lush gardens
just to cool yourself up.
The sun this time of the year
is hotter than usual
and everytime you go out for work,
or shopping or fun,
the hot air goes with you
and giving you unforgiving situations.
You'll be messy, 
sticky and sweaty all over.
Your fresh, just-had-a-shower look
will turn haggard in few moments.
Sun exposure even in just few minutes
is a no no
but if there's no way to avoid it,
then you have to wear long sleeves and facial masks
and apply sunscreen on exposed parts of the body.
Sunglasses are must-haves to protect your eyes.

The fiery heat of the summer afternoon sun in Cebu City, Philippines on March 25, 2017.

But the bigger picture during summer
is when people use more water and electricity
that shortage of both arise 
especially in the cities
because the population is much bigger.
Water levels in dams, 
which provide water, electricity
and irrigation at the same time,
become lower and even reach critical levels.
Critical levels in dams means
water will be rationed
interrupting supply in some parts of the city
with low water pressure to none at all.
Same with electricity.
Brownouts and blackouts occur
especially in the southern part of the country
because the suppy can't meet the enormous demand.
When additional electricity
is sourced from other companies,
price per kilowatt hour will go up
and consumers will be paying more than usual.
Besides those,
agriculture will suffer much
because of the lack of water.
There will be lower food production
which lead to higher prices in the markets.
Harvests will not be as good
and vegetables and fruits
will have stunted growths.

On the positive side,
summer is a great time for travel and vacation
and get-together for friends and families.
Beach resorts and pools are most preferred.
Since most students are not enrolled this time,
malls, theaters and other cool places are filled up.
Parks anywhere in the city
will be very good places to hang around
since trees and gardens neutralize
the fiery heat of the ever bright sun.

If you're in the Philippines, 
​shop at Shop Around Philippines.