Get a really long lightweight hand towel or cloth (I like the large ones at AutoZone.)
Put it under a tap and get it nice and soaked and then wring it out
Put it around your neck so that the ends fall forward onto your chest (this is why the towel needs to be really long so that it won’t fall off as you move around)
Train a fan on you
Congrats you just became comfortable as long as you have a fan trained on you and something cold to sip
For maximum comfort use the ends of the towel to wipe off your face and arms every now and then
Periodically as the towel dries out re-wet it
If you have multiple towels that will do for this you can put them on different parts of your body such as around your waist or over your thighs and knees as you’re sitting down or whatever
This can actually work pretty well
I don’t like the towels that are specifically marketed for this they don’t work as well as the AutoZone ones
And there’s no need to pay for a special towel
You don’t want to use a full bath towel because it’s just too much and it’s too heavy
However hats marketed for evaporative cooling can do pretty decently Walmart has them and Amazon does and many truck stops have them
To further chilling you can get the vest or coats designed for people who have to work outdoors whether dressed informally or more dressed up such as car salesman and alike
They make this and other garments for these people that have pockets for blue ice
If you need to be dressed up and it’s hot you can wear these under a suit jacket or similar
You change out the blue ice as it warms up over time but these are pretty effective
There are lots of similar solutions
If you know anybody who does construction or outdoor work over the summer or works in landscaping ask them they know so many tricks
In order to get anything evaporative to work properly you’ve got to have a source of moving air such as a fan or a decent breeze that you can stay in
When my ancestors were coping before home a/c they used things like this for the afternoons and early evenings and had fans all over the house just so that they could stay comfortable
If you’re going to be in a non-air conditioned environment during much or all of the day and evening then
Every say 6 to 8 hours at least lightly moisten a washcloth and put a tiny bit of soap on it and wipe your skin down
This gets the sweat residuals off your skin and makes you much cooler for the next few hours
I’m sure that these are only a few of the various adaptations people make but people who work outdoors or have to be outdoors all day long have all sorts of inside industry knowledge about being comfortable
We’re low on freon or whatever so I am covered in Paincakes…
ROFL
/image lost in a good book

a cold beverage, your choice, a fan and only enough clothes to not stick to the leather
@Cerridwyn read too late, am one with the leather now
How about those artic/ice plunge pools a few people got in Irks?
@tinamarie1974 oh man, getting there…
Get a house with a pool. God, I miss having a
pool. Sigh.
@Pony
Dip in the pool is my go-to when working outside.
@yakkoTDI I can’t pull off the bow tie
Use “personal evaporative cooling”.
Get a really long lightweight hand towel or cloth (I like the large ones at AutoZone.)
Put it under a tap and get it nice and soaked and then wring it out
Put it around your neck so that the ends fall forward onto your chest (this is why the towel needs to be really long so that it won’t fall off as you move around)
Train a fan on you
Congrats you just became comfortable as long as you have a fan trained on you and something cold to sip
For maximum comfort use the ends of the towel to wipe off your face and arms every now and then
Periodically as the towel dries out re-wet it
If you have multiple towels that will do for this you can put them on different parts of your body such as around your waist or over your thighs and knees as you’re sitting down or whatever
This can actually work pretty well
I don’t like the towels that are specifically marketed for this they don’t work as well as the AutoZone ones
And there’s no need to pay for a special towel
You don’t want to use a full bath towel because it’s just too much and it’s too heavy
However hats marketed for evaporative cooling can do pretty decently Walmart has them and Amazon does and many truck stops have them
To further chilling you can get the vest or coats designed for people who have to work outdoors whether dressed informally or more dressed up such as car salesman and alike
They make this and other garments for these people that have pockets for blue ice
If you need to be dressed up and it’s hot you can wear these under a suit jacket or similar
You change out the blue ice as it warms up over time but these are pretty effective
There are lots of similar solutions
If you know anybody who does construction or outdoor work over the summer or works in landscaping ask them they know so many tricks
In order to get anything evaporative to work properly you’ve got to have a source of moving air such as a fan or a decent breeze that you can stay in
When my ancestors were coping before home a/c they used things like this for the afternoons and early evenings and had fans all over the house just so that they could stay comfortable
If you’re going to be in a non-air conditioned environment during much or all of the day and evening then
Every say 6 to 8 hours at least lightly moisten a washcloth and put a tiny bit of soap on it and wipe your skin down
This gets the sweat residuals off your skin and makes you much cooler for the next few hours
I’m sure that these are only a few of the various adaptations people make but people who work outdoors or have to be outdoors all day long have all sorts of inside industry knowledge about being comfortable
@f00l Hmm, those odd microfiber towels they just sold would probably work well for that wet towel trick.
@Kyeh
AutoZone sells some that are about 30" or so long. They have to be long to not fall off your neck.
Inexpensive. I like these.
A 13 hour flight to Auckland would be favorite, but it’s off the menu until further notice.
Move to Alaska.
@ItalianScallion See my reply above.
@yakkoTDI Excellent! Missed that.
I usually just beat the heat with the chain of command.