Nov 20, 2010

Cold Weather is Coming

I've had a job for the last couple of weeks painting a building outside. (That's why I haven't posted anything in a while) Well the building is situated kinda funny. The West side gets absolutely no sunlight on the wall all day, where the East side is permanently in sunlight.

While working on the West side I had to wear thermals, street clothes, and a jacket. The wind chill on that side made it so bad that I lost all gross motor function in my hands after only about two hours of work. (I generally work 6 to 8 hours a day painting) And the rest of my body stopped working so well a couple of hours after that. My brain was also trying to shut down higher reasoning as well. And of course the worst part was, that combination makes for more accidents and every time I got a boo-boo it felt like I severed a limb.

Gloves don't help me much, as I suffered mild frost bite when I was a child, so am always susceptible to cold.

The other side of the building, in contrast, is so hot that by 10am I want to be in shorts and a tank top while working. I start the morning dressed like on the West side, but as the day grows hotter I begin to strip off layer after layer. By 11:30 or so I finish my coffee and switch to water to stay hydrated. The project should be done by the end of next week, so I can be done with these extremes, but I swear, it should be raining in the middle of the building at all times where the heat and cold meet.

Lessons learned:
Dress in layers
Don't over work, no mater how much you want to
Stay hydrated, especially in cold weather. You need it just as much, and don't realize it as well as in the heat.
Take breaks in a comfortable climate.
Watch you health. I think I'm coming down with a cold now because of working in these conditions improperly.

1 comment:

  1. Well, it's great to hear you're working but not good at all as far as the other stuff goes. Have you tried that Airborne stuff? It's kind of like Alka Seltzer and some people I know swear it helps them keep from getting sick or gets them over it more quickly while others said it didn't do anything at all. Worth a shot, maybe?

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