Writes Julia, my online Filipino content specialist:

Summer (more accurately known as the dry and hot season) here in the Philippines usually starts around March and continues up until June or July.

Here’s to give you some perspective on how hot it can get here in the Philippines:

That’s normal in most areas of the Philippines. In Cagayan Valley, they can reach temperatures as high as 107 degrees. You need to go to a hospital when you get a  fever that high. 

And I’ve been to Cagayan Valley during the dry season. It’s not fun. It’s the kind of heat that gives you sunburn if you stand under the sun for more than 5 minutes. Even when you’re in the shade, the air is so dry you can have windburn because of the hot winds.

The dry and hot season is also the time when most power outages usually happen. Mainly due to the increased energy usage from air conditioning. But fans and air conditioning are “must haves”, especially for us who work from home. 

Computers expel a lot of heat, especially when working on things like 3D and video rendering. It can’t expel that hot air efficiently when working in an already heated room. And when it gets too hot, it can affect the computer’s performance.  

So you can imagine, without air conditioning or fans, it can get really uncomfortable. This is my set up right now. I have the air conditioning on, a fan directed at me (under the table), and another fan directed at my computer (the stand fan). 

If it gets too hot, I may consider working earlier in the morning (5am) or later at night (after 10pm) to escape the heat.

If I get bored with this set up, I can just bring my laptop and my mobile wifi to the nearby beach. The heat’s easier to bear and work is more fun when I’m close to the beach.

You might consider asking your OFS what their situation is like. Can you make it more comfortable for them?  

Julia (and John)

PS. What questions do you have?  We’re looking to answer them.