The Art of Staying Cool When the World Around You is Melting

My mom bought me three hankies today. You might not think it's a big deal; you might even think that that's only something that old-fashioned people use.

You. Are. Wrong.




I've been in the Philippines for two and a half weeks now. During that time I am quite certain that I've produced fully one gallon of sweat. There is absolutely no way to stop it. Truthfully I'm not even exerting energy because it's so hot out, but the sweat still comes.

There are only three ways I've found to keep cool:
1. Driving around in air-conditioned cars which include: taxis, personal cars, and driving services. Considering how much time we actually spend driving it really amounts to considerable non-sweat moments. Traffic is horrendous at all hours of the day and night, so it takes forever to get anywhere. But that's a story for another time.

2. Going to malls. Which, considering they're as common as churches in America, it's quite easy to immerse myself in one mall or another. I'm quite certain that 90% of the Filipinos frequenting the shopping centers are really only there for the air-conditioning. I mean let's face it -- they don't have the money to spend on shopping frivolously every single day. A good number of these people are jobless. It's amazing how nice and cool these malls are -- even when they're packed with Filipinos in every corner.

3. Lay naked in front of a fan. Now I haven't tried this yet, but I've thought about it every single day. But I'd look like a beached whale sprawled out on the bed. It's not even my bed, it's my kid cousin's. And he has a tendency to burst into the room at any given moment.


So for now, I'll make good use of my hankies to wipe my brow, my neck, my back, etc. Besides, it's become something of a fashion statement here in the Philippines. And I like to stay current with the times and people I'm surrounded by. Aside from that, I am making good use of a good ole fashion hand-fan. You know the kind: they use them in all those southern movies all the time. I feel like I've stepped back in time with my farming hankies and belle fans.