So this morning on our swim in summer-soup ( 90 degrees and 100% humidity at 7:30 am? wth?) I was looking at him and thought it again- what does it mean??? followed by - Hey, I'm holed up, basking in AC during the heat-induced hibernation and have some extra time, I'll research it!
I was pretty interested in what I found- check it out!
Source: Wiki (so professional, I know)
Thankfully, we've discovered that sacrificing our dogs doesn't work- I'd say the best thing to do is to follow their lead: Find a cool, dark place (like my living room) and hide out until absolutely necessary to leave, or until the weather drops to a reasonable temperature.
Stay cool!
The Romans referred to the dog days as diēs caniculārēs and associated the hot weather with the star Sirius. They considered Sirius to be the "Dog Star" because it is the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major (Large Dog). Sirius is also the brightest star in the night sky. The term "Dog Days" was used earlier by the Greeks (see, e.g., Aristotle's Physics, 199a2).
The Dog Days originally were the days when Sirius rose just before or at the same time as sunrise (heliacal rising), which is no longer true, owing to precession of the equinoxes. The Romans sacrificed a brown dog at the beginning of the Dog Days to appease the rage of Sirius, believing that the star was the cause of the hot, sultry weather.
Dog Days were popularly believed to be an evil time "the Sea boiled, the Wine turned sour, Dogs grew mad, and all other creatures became languid; causing to man, among other diseases, burning fevers, hysterics, and phrensies." according to Brady’s Clavis Calendarium, 1813.
The modern French term for both this summer period (and for heat waves in general) "canicule", derives from this same term. It means "little dog", again referring to Sirius.
