CBS Early Show's Marysol Castro's in town -- can't imagine why. Oh, right. It's hot. Still, not so hot that two high-school footballers can't spend their after-practice hours toiling in the sun -- one on a construction site, the other decorating doorknobs with fliers, both hoping to buy a car. Their story follows.
In the meantime, what you see above was dispatched by the National Weather Service last night -- a reminder that, yes, this is hot. But not 1980 hot. Not yet. My 8-year-old son asked last night: "Dad, what did you do in 1980?" Um ... I was at summer camp down in Bruceville, which means I was outside, like, all the time. And, according to my folks, Dad's Second Avenue auto-parts business had its best summer ever. Water pumps and thermostats.
And, while we're on the subject of the hot hot heat: Several Friends of Unfair Park have asked if and when Dallas can expect more significant water restrictions, like those being imposed on surrounding municipalities. I asked Frank Librio, City Hall spokesman, if city officials are considering going to Drought Response Stage 1, which would trigger mandatory two-day watering restrictions broken down according to even- and odd-number street addresses. To which he responded thusly via email:
The lakes are currently 84% full and we continue to monitor conditions daily. The City's conservation program has been very effective in changing "how people use water."He also passed along this, for anyone who dares to look ahead: the City of Dallas Drought Contingency Plan, adopted by the city council last summer.
Stage 1 could be triggered three ways: if the reservoirs are below 65% full; a man-made or natural contamination of a water supply; and finally if we have reached or exceeded delivery capacity for 4 consecutive days.
