Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr - IT'S COLD! EVEN IN MERIDA, YUCATAN, MEXICO!

Well, it's not cold enough to make a snowman here, but we are feeling the effects of the cold front that is sweeping North America! Our temperatures have dipped to (in Farenheit) the very high 40's and low 50's in the mornings and evenings, but we do warm up to around 70 - 75 during the day and that is quite comfortable compared to our Northern neighbors who are literally freezing to death in this horrible cold front that is moving through the US and Canada. There are no immediate changes forecast in the near future either! Brrrrr!

For the local Yucatecans, the current temperatures brought on by this cold spell are unbearable. They are all bundled up as if they were going ice skating, and we Gringos have changed from shorts and T-shirts to long pants and T-shirts!

I have never been in a home in Merida or the surrounding area that has any heating system at all; air, yes - heat, no! We really just do not have a use for such a thing here in the Yucatan. (Unlike my friends in Canada and the US and other parts of the world who are probably thinking of putting their thermostats up just one more notch as they read this blog!) My family in Western New York State report that the snow plows are working overtime and they tell me how much snow they have and how cold it is, plus the wind chill factor, the ice conditions, etc., and so on, and I just shiver! I am so thankful to be where I am, here in Merida.

My friends in Florida, The Sunshine State, report they are expecting a frost and the farmers are preparing their orange groves and strawberry fields for a very cold, frosty evening. They burn smudge pots in the orange groves to save the crops and they water down the strawberries to create a thin coating of ice on the plants and fruits which, believe it or not, saves them! The strawberries won't be ready to harvest until February so here's hoping they can be saved as well as the orange groves. People are scurrying to cover their precious tropical plants and shrubs with old sheets and tarps and whatever else they can find to save them.

Because Mexico uses the metric system for measurements and Centigrade instead of Farenheit to measure temperatures, I often get confused. I think I have the temperature thing down pretty good. Here's a quick and easy formula for you to convert centigrade to farenheit without needing a calculator and a degree in math:

1. Take the Centigrade temperature.

2. Double it.

3. Add 26.

4. You have just converted Centigrade to Farenheit. And, it is fairly accurate.

Or, you can go to: http://www.allmeasures.com/temperature.html This is a great site for converting temperatures and is easy to use!

To all my readers, I wish you a Happy New Year, filled with the promise of peace, health, and prosperity. And in addition for you folks north of Merida, stay warm and cozy! If the cold gets to be too much for you, come on down!!!