Hot Weather

The heat was unreal -- so blistering that a windowsill thermometer overlooking Olympic Boulevard in downtown Los Angeles blew its top when the mercury hit 130 degrees. People consumed so much water that parts of the city briefly ran dry. Four people died. Dozens were hospitalized. It was still 89 degrees at 1 a.m. The record hot spell did not occur in 2006, but 1955, long before scientists raised the prospect of global warming and climate change.

For an artist who's played out his neuroses on screen for more than four decades, Woody Allen is remarkably unreflective about his creative process. Or perhaps it's just that he's wary of delving too deeply inside the black box of inspiration, lest all the parts not fit back inside. "It's possible that there is an underlying psychological thing that influences these choices that I'm not conscious of, that I'm responding to something going on in my life or other films, and I don't think I'm responding to them," he says in the dimly lighted screening room of his Manhattan offices.

Exercising in hot weather used be considered somewhat dangerous for kids. Doctors believed that children's bodies couldn't handle heat stress as well as adults' bodies. According to recent research, however, that is simply not true. Kids and adults exercising or working in hot weather have the same skin and rectal temperatures and cardiovascular response. That is good news for a nation with high rates of childhood overweight and obesity. "Most healthy children and adolescents can safely participate in outdoor sports and other physical activities through a wide range of challenging warm to hot climactic conditions," wrote the authors of a new policy statement in the journal Pediatrics on Sunday.

The heat wave that has scorched Southern California for several days is expected to ebb starting Monday as temperatures cool and humidity falls. The region will have cooled as much as 15 degrees by midweek after reaching highs of 93 in downtown Los Angeles, 97 at Getty Center and 108 in Chatsworth on Saturday, forecasters said. But the heat remained at full strength Sunday, prompting the weekend's second excessive heat warning from the National Weather Service. Many took refuge at beaches, pools and air-conditioned shopping malls.

Well, now do we believe there's global warming? And hadn't we all better bestir ourselves with remedies to cool it? MARSHA HUNT Sherman Oaks

Temperatures broke the 100-degree mark throughout much of the San Fernando Valley on Sunday. The heat is expected to continue today and Tuesday, with cooler weather returning later this week. "It's well above normal," said Rob Krohn, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard. "You usually don't see this in October." High temperatures Sunday were 101 in Northridge, 102 in Woodland Hills and Van Nuys, and 95 in Burbank.

Unseasonably warm temperatures in Thousand Oaks and the rest of Ventura County on Tuesday sent some residents searching for something cool. "We've been packed for the past two days," said Jennifer Alvarez, a clerk at Baskin-Robbins 31 ice cream store in Thousand Oaks. "Whenever the temperature goes up, people just start thinking 'ice cream.'

Capricious summer weather Sunday blew a tree down on a house in Downey, spawned thunderstorms in the desert and mountains, and scored at least one record high temperature. Beach-area residents, protected most of the day by cloud cover, enjoyed mild to pleasantly hot temperatures throughout the day, said National Weather Service spokesman Bill Hoffer. The Santa Monica Pier registered a high of 69 degrees while Long Beach reached 90, he said. Elsewhere, the weather was more eventful.

When hot weather appetites are dragging, a light touch with chicken will be welcome. With a microwave, you can cook easy but exciting recipes without heating up the kitchen. Unlike conventional ovens, microwaving does not waste excess energy by heating air or utensils. The energy goes directly to the food itself, making microwaving cool and efficient. The recipes that follow have taken inspiration from the foods of tropical climates, where stimulating the appetite in hot weather is a challenge.

Hot weather can mean trouble for lawns. Good watering habits, like watering more deeply and less frequently, will make your lawn look better. Dry, brown spots or an entire unhealthy lawn can be caused by the lawn moth, packed soil, poor watering methods or fertilizer burn. Never fertilize wet grass because it is likely to cause burns, even when the correct amount is used. Find out from a certified nurseryman how to tell when your lawn needs water depending on the needs of your particular grass.

Exercising in hot weather used be considered somewhat dangerous for kids. Doctors believed that children's bodies couldn't handle heat stress as well as adults' bodies. According to recent research, however, that is simply not true. Kids and adults exercising or working in hot weather have the same skin and rectal temperatures and cardiovascular response. That is good news for a nation with high rates of childhood overweight and obesity. "Most healthy children and adolescents can safely participate in outdoor sports and other physical activities through a wide range of challenging warm to hot climactic conditions," wrote the authors of a new policy statement in the journal Pediatrics on Sunday.

Nearly half the country's population sweltered under essentially triple-digit temperatures, as brutal heat and humidity afflicted a vast swath of the nation from New England to Texas. At least 15 states were under heat warnings Tuesday. The heat advisories — issued when the combination of temperature and humidity makes the perceived temperature more than 100 degrees — covered areas where 150 million people live, representing nearly half the nation's 310 million people, said Eli Jacks of the National Weather Service.

Easy. That's how Brittany Lincicome described her six-under-par 66 Thursday in the first round of the $2-million Kraft Nabisco Championship at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage. Stacy Lewis described her afternoon of golf a little differently. Lewis actually made a bogey in the 100-degree heat and had to step up and make a six-foot putt to save that bogey. But then came a stretch of three straight birdies and so, like Lincicome, Lewis also shot a 66. That puts the sometime roommates and frequent dinner companions together in the lead after the first round of the LPGA's first major of the season.

Crews battled a brush fire Tuesday that scorched parched hillsides and threatened homes in Kern County as inland areas of Southern California sizzled through triple-digit temperatures. The blaze had burned 1,100 acres by Tuesday night as aircraft made repeated assaults on flames that raced across ridge tops and into steep canyons near the communities of Lebec and Frazier Park, officials said. As heat baked the region for the second consecutive day, people sought relief at beaches, where large waves and strong rip currents kept lifeguards busy making rescues.

BERLIN -- French fries in Germany could be significantly shorter this year due to the heatwave that has baked Germany and much of Europe this month, the German Farmers' Association (DBV) said on Friday. Hot and dry weather has led to a meager harvest of extra-large potatoes used to produce the ideal-length French fry. "The French fries industry and consumers will have to brace themselves for shorter fries," said spokeswoman Verena Telaar, adding that smaller potatoes mean that fries will probably be 45 millimeters (1.8 inches)

Hot weather continued to scorch Southern California on Friday, with firefighters battling brush fires, businesses reporting runs on cold treats and air conditioners and everyone bracing for a few more days of sauna-like weather. Firefighters were able to contain or gain ground on three large fires caused by lightning strikes earlier in the week in Riverside County, even as temperatures crested above 105 degrees there. And in Los Angeles County, where lightning sparked 11 small fires Thursday in the Antelope Valley, Los Angeles County Fire Inspector Don Kunitomi said all were contained.

If you liked Saturday's hot weather, you'll enjoy today's because it'll be just as hot, meteorologists say. But don't forget to apply that SPF 45 sunscreen before heading outside, because the ultraviolet index is expected to top 10 again. "With the sunshine and the warm temperatures, you will certainly burn," said WeatherData meteorologist Harry Woolford. "So you'll definitely need protection."

The number of snake calls reported in Ventura County has more than doubled in recent weeks as the reptiles seek shelter in residential areas from the unseasonably hot weather, animal control officers reported. "We usually get about one or two calls a week, but now we're getting about 15," said Mia Frost, chief of operations at the Ventura County Animal Regulation Department in Camarillo. "I expect there's going to be even more in the next couple of weeks."

The gates had not yet opened at Raging Waters in San Dimas on a recent sunny morning, but assistant Girl Scout leader Brenda Mauss was already in the parking lot urging her five charges to slather on the sunscreen. The plan was to be in line for the 10 a.m. opening to wring every drop of pleasure from the day. Admission to the water park — the state's largest — costs $36.99. But Mauss had discount coupons from a fast-food restaurant that knocked 10 bucks off each ticket.

How hot was it Tuesday on the East Coast? "I feel like I'm taking an endless hot yoga class, fully clothed," said Marcy Leash, 28, emerging from the subway in Manhattan's Union Square. "It's like driving into a hair dryer," Alex Goren, 70, wrote in a text message as he tooled around Long Island's swanky East End with the top down on his red convertible. "It feels like I'm standing behind a muffler out here," said Megan Heltzel, 23, on a street corner in Washington.