The Heat Wave and Our Changing Lifestyle

The current heat wave tagged el nino has been affecting lots of lives around the world in different ways, from how it affects their health to how it has changed the ways they do things especially going out and the increase in cost of living for many. The heat wave is very much intense here in my country Nigeria as well and we all can't help but cry for the same rain we can't wait to stop some months ago. I guess that's human for you, we usually don't know the value of what we've until we lose it. I've watched a lot of people complain about the heat wave, especially people with young children around me, who complains about their kids being unable to sleep due to it.

Even I myself I'm affected by the heat wave, because there have been a couple of nights where I literally roll on the bed unable to sleep because of the heat and I had to wake up in the middle of the night to take a shower multiple times because day breaks just to curb the effect of the heat on me. But then, I must say that I'm actually somewhat fortunate and not to affected by the heat wave same way most people are and that's because of the fact that I have three solar powered fan and since the sun is usually intense, these help me charge those fans and be it the afternoon or at night, I can turn them on, so they can give me some artificial air to cool than the pressure of the heat.

I can only imagine what those without electricity supply in my neighborhood and still don't have solar energy to power their fans are fairing in these periods of el nino heat wave. Talking about if it has cost me the need to spend more, to be honest, yes I know spend more than I use to, but I won't say it's something significant, because all I spend more buying is more water at work. In the past, the water I take from home to the office is usually enough to last me till I close for the day, but now I buy extra hundred naira water at work due to the heat that leads to taste.

But then, I know of friends and neighbours who have to spend more due to the heat, I mean come to think of it, even though we don't have electricity in our neighborhood for the past six months, they've been able to manage themselves without fueling their generator due to the cold weather, but since the advent of these heat wave, many of them spend a lot of money on buying petrol to power their generators, so they can on fan to power their fan for air while the generator stays on.

Assuming many of us plants trees in our compound, that would have reduce the intense effect of the heat wave, but as time e didn't, that's why it effect is more, and I guess and hope this will serve as an eye opener to start planting trees because of the positives impact they make on our ecosystem and society at large.

All photos are generated using ChatGpt.