Sweet Nothings

Yes, we went to Disney World again. Get over it. As usual, for reasons of space and sanity let’s concentrate on what was new and different. The heat Florida in August is a furnace. No matter how many times you tell yourself this, the reality still blasts you in the face like an angry, sweaty fire god. On the first afternoon I was briefly reconsidering the entire trip. Being a shopping and entertainment district, Disney Springs was not designed with shade in mind; unfortunately, Gideon’s Bakehouse has carved itself such a unique artisanal niche that cookie-craving customers must line up in the sun-baked asphalt for aeons. Thank God for their Nitro Cold Brew’s immense restorative powers. Also, late stage capitalism offers innumerable heat-defeating products, from cooling towels to the ubiquitous neck fans, through rehydration tablets all the way down to chafing sticks. After the first couple of days, once we’d got into the rhythm of downing a bottle of water and reapplying our sun ...