Beat the Heat: 6 Subscription Services for Hot Days

Hot Weather Hacks: Panera, Circle K, Planet Fitness, Car Wash, and Beauty Subscriptions

It’s going to be a tough week for van dwellers in Nevada as temperatures rise into the nineties, making it scorching hot outside. No doubt the hardest part of living in a van is coping with summer heat.

I am team #boycottwinter but not with scorching heat.

On perfect weather days, my routine involves waking up to the sound of birds chirping and watching the rare sunrise over the mountains of North Las Vegas while enjoying a black cup of coffee from my van.

As an enerologist, nature is a crucial part of my daily spiritual routine.

However, if the weather is blazing hot like it is today and for the foreseeable future in the part of Nevada were I’m at, I’ll have to adjust my plans as anything above 85 degrees is too hot for this Houseless and Zipcodeless Nomad.

When the weather is unpleasant I just leave the van and go do something else like go to Panera Bread where I pay a monthly fee for an Unlimted Sip Club Subscription. The subscription service includes unlimited coffee, tea, or any other beverage.

I can get a different beverage every two hours, and no one watches or cares how often you get drinks. After my first cup, I’m more interested in the air conditioning and internet than beverages, this is another perk that comes with the Panera Bread Sip subscription service.

I also enjoy Panera’s soups and sandwiches.

I have to leave the Panera before noon, or else I’ll be overwhelmed by the rush of people and conversations, which bothers my introverted self. By the way, I’ve realized that I’m more of an introvert during the day and an ambivert at night (somewhere in between).

My type of introvert is not shy, but I need time to RECHARGE because I get sensory overload quickly. The non-stop music played in Panera and the arrival of lunch crowds are enough to push my sensory limit to its peak.

This is SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE #1, allowing me to stay cool in the heat. I can! You can!

Afterward, I visit the carwash, where I have a subscription service and get unlimited basic car washes. I know the line will be long, and that’s good. I don’t mind waiting in line in my van home with the air conditioning on to stay cool.

This is SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE #2, that keeps this woman on wheels, cool.

Next, I’ll stop by Circle K, a convenient store where I have the Sip & Save Monthly Beverage subscription.

It’s different from Panera, where you pay $12.99, and your membership is automatically renewed. With the Circle K subscription, you pay month by month, and if you no longer want to be in the sip club, you don’t pay for that month. With Panera, you can withdraw, but until then, it’s an automatic renewal.

Why have two sip club subscription services? When you are living in a van without a refrigerator on a hot Nevada day, two beverage subscriptions services means more options.

I keep this subscription service to get ice. I can get any beverage and I am not limited to ice, but the ice along is worth the cost. It’s firmer, crunchier, and lasts longer than watery ice at a restaurant or a bag of ice.

.This is SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE #3, that helps me stay cool. It can help you too!

Next, I go to Planet Fitness, where I have a service — SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE #4 — to shower, exercise, watch TV, use the massage chair or bed, or sit at the tables in the front lounge area.

On a perfect weather day, I’m only there to shower. I can walk and play at the park. I have to look at exercising as playing, which makes it easier to do.

PF just isn’t my jam. I dislike hanging out inside, whereas Panera is at least tolerable. PF is not. I have never heard a good song played in the gym. It says “no judgment zone,” but one can get very distracted in the judging department, even as far as myself walking past a large mirror.

Plus, it’s dim inside, and I prefer light and outdoor air.

Next, I bought a subscription — SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE #5 — at a beauty college. For $40 per month, you can get three services. I have a full slate, as I haven’t used any of the services this month yet.

I could drop by and see if they have any openings for walk-ins. However, I would pass on getting my hair done because the two-strand twists are going to last me a while. I don’t want a manicure or pedicure because it’s not really my jam.

I spend so much time in nature that pedis and medis are not a part of my pampering routine. When I pamper myself, I usually get my hair done (washed, conditioned, and twisted). I just did that a few days ago. Additionally, the subscription includes eyebrows, lashes, and skin care services. Not really in the mood for any of it.

SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE #6

I haven’t gotten one yet, but once I research amusement/water parks in Nevada, I might consider getting a pass. Back in my home base of Ohio, I had an amusement park pass. I got the idea from another woman living in a van. Who says you gotta have kids with you to go to an amusement park?

You might ask why I don’t just find a local pool. Well, I already did, but they have designated adult swim hours that I will explore. In the meantime, I’ll research amusement parks to see if they have water rides or areas where you don’t have to be fully immersed in water and can just get sprinkled.

It’s scorching, so I have to figure out something indoors. As I’m writing this, I don’t have a plan yet. I could go to a smoke-filled casino, which is more tolerable than the gym, because the noises and lights coming from the slot machines excite me.

I have $20 put away as gambling money. My hope going in would not be to leave with winnings but to have hours and hours of play after only starting with twenty dollars.

Or I could look up a library. Surprisingly, as much as I go to libraries in other states I travel through, I have not been to one here in Vegas. I tried, though. One I could not find with my GPS, another was right next to a high school, and I don’t know why I didn’t go in.

I’ve been to libraries in every state I travel through, but I have not seen a library that fits me as perfectly as a baseball glove as the one in my home base of Ohio. I’m biased but I digress.

I refuse to eat inside a restaurant because it is just not my jam. I’m OCD, and it’s the kind of OCD that only bothers me with certain things. Restaurants bother me, casinos don’t. Sitting in a casino that has probably seen a million booties, and a trillion puffs of smoke does not bother me as much as a waitress who improperly handles silverware.

Hotels are cheap. The exact same hotel that my son paid a fortune for when he flew to Vegas during Super Bowl week is now under $40. Again the idea of sleeping in a hotel that has seen no doubt millions of butts, ignites my OCD siren. I told you, I’m OCD about certain things.

Campgrounds are nice. It’s 50/50 whether I will cool off there as opposed to camping in free space. I have fans that don’t need to be plugged in, so I can use them to cool off even if I camp for free.\

I spent the last three weekends in Las Vegas enjoying the beautiful weather. I went to two festivals: one was a foodie fest. Believe me when I tell you that the festivals and food cost more than what hotels are going for. Dishes cost $30, and a nibbler costs $25. A speciality drink in fancy glass or bottle is $20-$30.

I’m not going to spend my reserve on a hotel. At 90 degrees, I can duck and dodge the sun until it goes down, and being in my van at night is pleasant. 60 degrees at night is perfect for me.

Who knows, maybe I’ll take a walk at the mall today, and then tomorrow, on Tuesday, I might use my movie gift card which I’ve had for several years and still has a balance that I checked recently

On Tuesdays, you can get into the movie for $5, and you also get popcorn and a drink. That’ll keep me cool for a few hours. On the rare occasions when I go to the movies, I usually come in when I think the previews are over. But this time, just like waiting in line at the car wash, I’ll do anything to stay in the air-conditioning longer and out of my hot van.

Nevada, particularly Las Vegas, is renowned for its plethora of free activities, providing ample options for beating the relentless heat. Whether you live on wheels or not, the primary objective is to evade the scorching temperatures and discover ways to stay cool.

With an abundance of free activities available, Nevada, known for it’s sweltering heat, is ironically a haven for those seeking respite from the heat.

I’ll save my reserve lodging $$$ for 100 degrees or above, and I have been in Vegas when it was 105 degrees.

That’s when it’s time to get a hotel where millions of people have stayed. Or maybe I’ll move over to a cooler town.

What is your favorite season, hot or cold? What do you do to escape summer heat!

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