U.S. Campus Life BU = Beach University By Masako Yamada	フレームで見る  英文をプリントする  脚注をプリントする
つかの間の夏 ボストンは一時的な熱波に襲われています。気温は夏のように上昇し、数週間前まではセーター姿だった学生たちも、一挙に衣替えし、短パンや花柄のドレス姿となりました。野外で日焼けを楽しむ人も出てきて、キャンパスはまるで浜辺のよう。ところが雅子さんは部屋にこもることが多くなりました。さてそのわけは…。

Two short weeks ago, I was still wearing sweaters to school. My wardrobe was centered around neutral colors like grey and black. It seemed as though spring would never come.

This past week has changed all of that. For three days in a row, temperatures were around 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius). Apparently, it is the first time on record that a heat wave has hit Boston so early in the year. Almost overnight, students could be seen wearing shorts, sandals and sunglasses. Many of the young women have pulled out flowery pastel-colored dresses to match the flowers that have suddenly bloomed outside. Even my black schoolbag has started to look out of place.

Floor-to-ceiling windows occupy one of the walls of my computer lab and the view from the window has been very tempting, indeed. During the winter, not many people congregate around the benches and patches of grass, but all of a sudden, throngs of people have started to chat and relax outside. Indeed, I've seen some of the students pull out beach towels so they can work on their tans in between classes.

Needless to say, the pleasant view from the window makes it harder for everyone to concentrate on working. One of my friends has an office that overlooks the "BU Beach," a pleasant patch of grass on the banks of the Charles River, and he said that as soon as the weather improved, the department offices seemed to clear out.

I'm just as happy as anybody to see the weather improve, but for most of the day, I have chosen to stay inside my building. This isn't because I'm particularly disciplined. Rather, it's because these record-high spring temperatures have triggered a record-high pollen count. Partly because of this high pollen count, local newspapers have been reporting extremely low "quality of air" figures, and have been suggesting that people not engage in strenuous exercise outdoors. One morning during the heat wave, I stepped outside of my apartment and was immediately hit by a sneezing fit. I must have sneezed about 30 times before rushing to the nearest pharmacy for allergy medicine. Our energy-efficient laboratory buildings have windows that don't open. Instead, filtered, "climate-controlled" air is circulated throughout the buildings. Although I usually like to breathe natural air, this is one time that I'm happy to be enclosed in a protective bubble.

Many people around me have had severe allergic reactions during the past week. In addition, many people have suffered colds because of the fluctuations in temperature. I think I have been hit by both, and I have been feeling sick for most of the week. Indeed, I've been feeling so ill that I've started to convince myself that I have diabetes. How else could I explain my perpetual thirstiness, craving for chocolate, low energy level and constant desire to go to the bathroom? One of my labmates asked me when my "diabetes" hit. I told him (reluctantly) that it was about a week ago. He smirked and said, "Isn't that about the time it started to get hot outside?" Another friend lent a more sympathetic ear, and he told me about his own "diabetic" symptoms.

I've heard that this heat wave is only temporary, and that tempeatures should be returning to normal soon. Indeed, it has been cool at night, even during the peak of the heat wave, and I've already started to feel the temperatures settle down during the day. Some people claim that in a certain sense, this heat wave has been a good thing for allergy sufferers, since all of the grasses and flowers have given up their pollen in a very short period of time. The logic is that things will be a lot better now that all of the damage has been done. I'm not entirely sure whether this is true, so all I can say is that I will only gradually give in to the temptations of the sunny outdoors scene.

Shukan ST: May 18, 2001

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