It's getting real hot, real fast
A colleague and I went for a run before starting work yesterday at 8am. We have a group at work who are usually keen for a jaunt around the local park together for a few kilometres, but after seeing what the temps were going to be like for the day, we thought it was perhaps a bit less, well, objectively dangerous, to go running in the morning instead.
As we made our second circuit around the park, I guess roughly clocking in at five kilometres, I began to realise the value of the tiny water bottles that dear colleague had brought. We were sweating like little piggies, vying for every piece of shade we could manage to cower under, yet the inevitable moments those rays of death from humanity's lifegiver hit us; we realised that it was far beyond what our bodies were made to handle.
Europe, as you've probably heard by now, is in the midst of a really serious heatwave. The chickens have most definitely come home to roost (or I guess "roast" is more apt in this context), and for once it seems like the news has decided its worth reporting on a bit more than the bland "oh it's hot and we can just forget about this soon anyway so don't worry", type way they tend to do.
Something I learned back in university, when I was studying Journalism for a semester or two, was the classic "if it bleeds, it leads", meaning that if someone dies or is hurt, then that's the top story. Unfortunately, that is exactly what we are getting this time: 40 people (mostly younger) drowning in France as they try to escape the heat, over 200 people in Spain dying this week likely related to heat-related incidences, and most heartbreaking of all was the horrific story of two children in France who couldn't get out of a car and both ended up dying as the child lock had been activated. (And as I write this post, it seems another toddler has died in the same way).
What the fuck are we (not) doing? I've been toying with the idea of getting solar panels for the balcony just to do something but it's honestly ridiculous that that's about all I've got as an option to have a chance to change something, and to be clear: it won't change jack-shit. One of the most eye-opening moments was again during our run yesterday morning. My colleague is very climate conscious and has worked in the space to try and make a difference, but even she admitted that it's kind of over. So is that where we end up standing on this; that we all just say, "fuck it, we tried nothing and it's too late to bother"?
I see my nephew getting bigger and bigger and it's hard to know what the future looks like for him, and all the other children being brought into the world by people who just want to be the best parents they can, offering their kids as much of the world as they can muster, but their hard work is being pulled out from under their feet just for a few more millions/billions/fuck it, trillions for some cunts to revel in.
You know what is probably the most frustrating part of this whole nightmare? That no one will be held accountable. It is the world we've decided to create for ourselves where if you out-earn the next person, then you're off scot-free for whatever shitstorm you brewed and poured on the rest of our collective heads. Brilliant.
In the bottom right of my screen, Windows is telling me that there's a "Warnung vor Hitze" (a heat warning). No shit mate, I guess I'll get back inside to embrace the devil's blankie, telling myself that it's going to be ok, provided we make it through the weekend.