No, the water is not quite that cold, and it does warm up a bit as the summer passes. The river, on the other hand, IS that cold since we are close to the dam, and it stays that way!

Here are some NOT exaggerations:

*Stepping outside the house really does feel like you are standing in front of your open oven door.

*You open your car door, buckle your seat belt, and steer the car with an oven mitt or other some such protection.

*There is no such thing as cold tap water. Praise the Lord for automatic ice-makers! All laundry is hot or warm water wash.

*A cold shower burns until the water that is in the pipes that are between the street and the house is used up. For some reason (?) they are buried about 2" from the surface here, and exposed during high winds when the dirt blows away.

*You take a water bottle EVERYWHERE, and so do your kids.

*You pray not to have your car break down or get a flat.

*The inside temperature of your car may be over 180 degrees in less than 20 minutes.

*You park where there is shade (IF there is shade), not in the spot closest to the door!

*The morning sun is hotter than the late afternoon/evening sun.  It is more direct.  By late afternoon the entire landscape has warmed up, so there is more of an enveloping feel to the heat. It is even pleasant!  That morning sun feels like a laser burning into you.

*If your pillow is leaning agains the wall, it will be too hot to put your face on at night.

Having said all that, I will say I am very thankful that I never even SEE a mosquito (probably they can't survive here!), and that I rarely break a sweat, and that when I get out of the shower, I don't feel like I need another one before I can even get my clothes on :o)  ...Not until the monsoon kicks in, anyway...

For those of you who are confused, "Mohave" is spelled with an "h" on the east side of the Colorado River, and with a "j" (Mojave) in California.