Welcome to those Hot and Humid Days

It's the unofficial start to summer in the good old USA and it's already steamy out there. Thanks climate change. 

But in all seriousness, scientists are already anticipating this being one of the hottest summers on record. 

I was in Orlando, Florida last week and it was in the 90s F (low 30s C) with 90% humidity each day I was visiting. Since I had to be out and about in that weather, I couldn't do my normal routine of hide in a cool dark place until the sun went down. It’s kind of hard to enjoy Disney World if you don’t leave your hotel room.

Yeah, I try not to go out at all in August and July in the northern hemisphere, especially not where I have spent the majority of my life, Washington DC. If you don’t have easy access to a pool or sprinkler system, it’s best to just stay inside during the summer month days. Otherwise, you’ll likely drown in a pool of sweat.

 However, if I do find myself outside in the middle of summer, I have some ways to mitigate the effects of the heat and humidity. I utilized most of them in Orlando.

1. Have access to plenty of water - while in Orlando, I was drinking more than my usual amount of water. My sister and I carried around at least one bottle that we could easily refill. Thankfully, Disney World guests can ask for a free cup of ice water almost anywhere in the parks.
2. Wear a hat - a hat will keep your face covered and add some protection from the sun.
3. Wear sun screen and reapply it often - everyone, regardless of skin tone, should wear sunscreen if out between 10:00AM and 2:00PM when the sun is most intense. I also recommend choosing a sunscreen that is mineral based or a coral reef-safe brand. Don’t forget your ears and reapply as instructed.
4. Cover your shoulders - like wearing a hat, keeping your shoulders covered adds a layer of protection against the sun. It maybe temping to wear spaghetti straps or tank tops, but trust me, you’ll want the extra protection. 
5. Take a break in the shade - it’s usually a bit cooler outside of the sun and taking a break will give your body some time to recover. If you’re in a place that lacks shade (like the desert or grasslands), it maybe beneficial to have a pop tent set up or avoid that 10:00AM to 2:00PM time frame all together.

I’m used to humidity, but a few years ago, I took a trip to Arizona. The dry heat was like nothing I’d ever experienced before. I honestly wouldn’t have guessed it was in the 80sF (or high 20sC) while I was there. It didn’t feel hot to me. 

However, that can be just as, if not more, dangerous. With humidity, I can feel my body loose water and overheating. Without humidity, I can only guess how hot I am based on how much direct sunlight I’m exposed to. Again, that list above is important to keeping cool and hydrated. 

If you’re going to try to beat the heat by going hiking or spending time in nature, then there are a couple of additional precautions you should take.

Bug spray is a must. Ticks, spiders, other insects are at their peak in summer months. Ticks in particular are super dangerous in my area, but mosquitoes are nothing to sneeze at either when it comes to being a danger to a person’s health. Wearing big spray (preferably a natural one) will keep you safe. Again, reapply often (about every two hours) and do a tick check as soon as you return from your out door activity. And for all that is holy…

…Avoid tall grass. Stick to the marked trail. Ticks, spiders, snakes, insects, and other animals often hide in tall grass. Sticking to marked trails will keep you safe from these critters along with plants like poison ivy, hogweed, and prickly plants that might scratch your skin.

Adventurers await all of us this summer, whether we leave our homes or not (some of us can have adventures while reading at home). If you plan to be out and about in the heat and humidity, please keep yourself safe while having fun.

Until the next week.

If you enjoyed this post (or it pissed you off), please like, share, or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope y’all like hearing from me.

Welcome to a Happy DC Universe

Please note that this is a piece on my own experience with superhero media. My experience was very limited in the 1990s and 2000s and was often drawn from early incarnations of the characters shown on TV. I started reading the comics more in the 2010s.

In an era where Marvel has taken over (thanks to Disney) and the latest X-Men animated series has taken pop culture by storm (pun loosely intended), it seems that Marvel is currently winning the long standing rivalry between them and DC. My first introduction to Marvel was through the Spiderman movie from 2002 and the animated series X-Men Evolution. I was aware of other animated Marvel shows from the 1990s, but they weren’t often on the kids channels as reruns. 

Though both the Spiderman movie and X-Men Evolution TV series had their dark moments (Uncle Ben dying and learning Nightcrawler’s origin were both traumatic for little me), they were overall lighthearted and fun. Those properties are what I associated with Marvel for a long time and wasn’t familiar with other heroes like Captain America, Iron Man, or Deadpool.

I was much more familiar with DC heroes.

The 1992 Batman the Animated Series (which introduced me to Kevin Conroy as the best Batman) along with the 1989 movie were some of the first superhero properties I watched. Plus, with my dad being a fan of Scooby Doo, Justice Friends, and the 1960s live action TV show, Batman popped up a lot. Sure the older versions were lighthearted like Marvel, but it was the dark and brooding 90s incarnation that caught my attention. That didn’t mean that these versions didn’t have their fun moments. The animated Batman is still one of my favorites, even if his story ends more on the tragic end, and that series joined up with Superman the Animated Series to bring us Justice League and Justice League Unlimited, Batman Beyond, and a ton of crossovers with the amazing Static Shock. 

Sure, there were dark moments (like what happened to Tim Drake and Richard Grayson), but overall things were still pretty light hearted going into the mid-2000s with Teen Titans (minus any of that “go” nonsense).

And if you’re wondering how I can say all this without mentioning the comics, well… I wasn’t yet a comic book reader. In fact, the only graphic novels I was familiar with, at this time, were the Asterix ones my dad had from the 60s and started bring back from Europe for me to read (I didn’t see an Asterix book in the United States until the early 2010s). My sibling read Tintin. 

Superheroes were fun to young me. They could be dark and brooding, but they still smiled and laughed. They had friends and trusted people. Their villains were evil, but never to the point where the good guys lost hope.

Again, wasn’t reading the comics at this time. I had no idea who Jason Todd or how he died. I was only familiar with the Teen Titans version of Slade, not the comic book one. I didn’t know about Bane breaking Batman’s back. The animated series wasn’t allowed to kill anyone, but a child was tortured to the point of insanity on my screen.

And then “Batman Begins” hit theaters.

Suddenly broody superheroes were all the rage. It was quickly followed by the incredible “Dark Knight” and “Dark Knight Rises”. Both had huge body counts, intimidating villains, and high stakes without a happy Batman insight (probably because he didn’t have a Robin dressed as a traffic light to make bad puns while taking down bad guys).

You can even see how it influenced the early “Iron Man” and second iteration of “Spiderman” (the Andrew Garfield version) movies. However, they still maintained some level of fun. It wasn’t until I saw “Avengers” in 2012, that I felt that superheroes were being shown as fun again in theaters.

And while, Marvel (now owned by Disney) had taken Superheroes in a more fun adventure direction, 2010s DC cinema seemed to think that dark and gritty was the only way to go for more “realism” (or that’s the argument I’ve heard). By this point, the CW’s Smallville had ended and the “Arrowverse” was taking off. DC fans, luckily, still had fun adventures with DC Animation, but even that had gotten darker and grittier when not explicitly made for teens and kids (Young Justice was fantastic and was canceled because allegedly the “wrong” demographic liked it more than than the targeted one, it was later resurrected for two more seasons). 

DC fans may have liked “Wonder Woman”, but they hated “Batman v. Superman”. “Suicide Squad” was a mess and the less said about “Justice League” the better. DC did have a cool take with “Titan” and “Gotham” has the right mix of Batman 1989 and the 1992 animated series, but they seriously botched the ending.

And then the 2020s came and fans were given the light and joy that is My Adventures with Superman. Superman was suddenly fun again. He was young, inexperienced and hopeful. He wasn’t carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders and he wasn’t fighting with any other hero. He was a dork on a mission to fit in apnea become a reporter. Of course he had to save cats in his down time, he’s a good guy. 

The second season is coming out soon and it’s like I’m back in time on a Saturday morning watching Justice League or Static Shock again. I’m excited and happy and, above all, hopeful.

More recently, I’ve become familiar with the Webtoon Batman: Wayne Family Adventures. It is everything I want in a BatFam (what the fans have dubbed Bruce Wayne’s growing collection of children and Gotham based superheroes) media. And it’s officially a DC publication!

Bruce is a tired single dad raising a gaggle of feral children while Alfred tries to keep everything somewhat stable. It is a must read for anyone who has ever wanted Bruce to finally find some measure of happiness. There’s a YouTuber who has been narrating the comic and, though I don’t love all the voices, it does add an extra layer to the experience. Some are calling it the best Batman comic to come out in a long time. 

I’ve talked before about the Scooby Doo and Batman crossover comics. The webtoon is similar in tone in that it’s a lighthearted adventure. However, the difference is that the webtoon is a bit more mature. It doesn't shy away from topics like Jason’s PTSD, Tim being a disaster bi icon, and the fact that Bruce makes mistakes, lots and lots of mistakes. He even has a mug that says “World’s Okay-est Dad”. 

I hope that DC listens to fans and understands that fans want a balance of fun adventure with the angst. We don’t want “Teen Titan Go”. We want 2000s “Teen Titans”. We like campy Batman villains that are actually threatening (“Gotham” has some seriously scary moments, but still has time for 1960s antics). Superman is a dork. He believes in Santa Claus (who actually does exist in the DC universe) and his costume was made by his mom. We really enjoy Harley Quinn post Joker breakup (she and Ivy are a truly iconic queer couple). 

A lot of us grew up with fun superheroes who dealt with tough topics, especially those of us who are products of the 1980s and 1990s.

So, please DC, let your heroes be happy.

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope you like hearing from me.

Until the next week.