Can't wait til it's only 102! Break out the parkas!

I grew up in New York. A hot summer day meant 90, maybe 92, with the threat of a thunderstorm cooling everything off.

Now, if I saw double-digits, I’d probably throw on a sweater.

I know the common answer to this next question is “LEAVE,” but what do you guys (still can’t say “y’all” without hearing my Queens and Bronx-raised grandmothers crying) do to beat the heat? Eat ice cream? Sit around in your underwear? Do both of those at the same time?

Those have been my two favorites this week, but have drawn glares from my neighbors.

Please help a brother out; I’m about to go Travis Bickle on this city.

1. Yesterday, Charles provided visual evidence that, yes, it’s really hot outside. While several Park Cities residents abandon our fair burg for cooler climes, the rest of us are hurrying between air-conditioned spaces. If you and your brood want to stay cool on the cheap, head over to NorthPark Center for Andy Mason’s “Folk Rock For Kids” presentation at 10:30 a.m.. And maybe indulge in a little retail therapy to take the edge off the heat, too.

2. Want to stay even cooler? Tell someone about our openings for fall internships. All the info is right cheer.

3. And while Friday Fellowship ended all the way back in May, the Highland Park Presbyterian Church knitting fellowship still meets every Friday like clockwork, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Want to learn to knit? These ladies would love to teach you.

Yes, after the car “cooled down,” the outside temperature read 111 degrees. Is this an act of terrorism?

And to think, it looked like Dallas had beat the Heat in June.

I admire the ingenuity of this letter carrier in the PC. Notice her personal umbrella hat.

Prompted by this reader submitted bust last year, others are sending photos in hopes of qualifying for the unofficial June 2011 Biggest Waste of Water in the Park Cities Sweepstakes.

Photo number 1 is a mid-day watering at the Park Cities YMCA University Park Elementary. The other was taken yesterday at 4:30 in the afternoon at SMU, about two hours after the sprinklers got busy cooling the grass in 100 degree heat.

1. Chances are, if you’re just now rising and shining, as the title of this post suggests, you’re a student enjoying those first few special days of summer vacation. The pools in Highland Park and University Park are now open, and the heat is on. Hope you’ve been practicing your belly flop, Dan Koller.

2. Tootsies is hosting the Dallas Summer Musicals Center Stage donors for a reception tomorrow from 6 to 8 p.m. There will be wine, hors d’oeuvres, and perhaps a few show tunes?

3. Tomorrow night is also the first in a series of talks at the Church of the Holy Cross covering Christian culture in Western civilization. Sound interesting? Find out more here.

4. And as Georgia mentioned yesterday, tonight is the first dinner-and-a-movie event for Highland Park Village Theatre. Hawaiian barbecue? Yes, please!

Someone going by username refidnasb1 claims to have footage of a tornado in University Park on Tuesday evening. Fast forward to the 3 minute mark.

From Highland Park DPS’s Marty Nevil:

We are experiencing the usual power outages due to multiple transformers being blown, signal lights out, and down tree limbs.

I’ll update this over the course of the night if need be, so feel free to comment or e-mail (bradford@peoplenewspapers.com). Be safe.

UPDATE: From University Park’s Steve Mace

University Park was spared from storm damage.  From 7:45 p.m. to 1:45 a.m. UPFD responded to 3 fire/smoke alarm calls.  All were unfounded, possibly triggered by lighting in the area.  Otherwise, there seems to have been little tree damage.  Dispatch received two or three tree limb calls, but there was nothing that blocked motorists or that caused property damage.

Should we be concerned with scary weather and a plague of snails?

Shane Walker and Billy Fulmer

A little bit of rain didn’t dampen the creativity of the Dallas Arboretum’s Mad Hatter’s Tea party today.  Two of the “top” winners of the day were Shane Walker and Billy Fulmer‘s elegant wonderful floral pieces.

Want one? Retail: $3,000 each. If you want real diamonds instead of rhinestone, $30,000+. Can’t promise delivery by Mother’s Day, though.