Not Fall Yet!

An organization Hubby Tony belongs to had a potluck picnic for this afternoon. The event used to happen in the summer, but for the past few years it's been held in mid-September so the weather would be moderate. This year Mother Nature didn't get the memo; the high today was forecast to be 98°F. (For comparison, the record is 101°). Oy!

Our section of the alphabet was assigned to bring a salad or side dish, and I had decided to make roasted vegetables with pesto. Last night I went to the grocery store and bought broccoli, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, carrots, Brussels sprouts, and a red onion. It wasn't until I got home that I made the connection between 'roasting' and running the oven in hot weather 😏. Even though the cooking process heated the kitchen up, I was thankful that thanks to the temperature it was easy to keep my dish warm at the park.

Big bowl of veggies

When we left the house it was 95°. The sun made it feel even hotter, and the air was still. Fortunately, the park pavilion was shady. A couple of fans placed on picnic tables got a nice cross breeze going, especially when I took a seat right in front of the one on the food serving table.

We were there for about three hours. It was nice to talk with friends and catch up with people I hadn't seen in a while. Shortly before the main dish arrived (fried chicken from a nearby restaurant) one of the organizers decided the fan by me should be turned off. That made it even hotter, and it was even worse when the table I chose to eat at was close to the west side of the pavilion and started to lose its shade as the sun moved across the sky.

Tony was also feeling the sun's heat. We finished our food, had some dessert, then decided to say our goodbyes. The car's temperature gauge registered 102°, and even with the air conditioner on full blast it took forever for things to cool off.