Italian writer Dante Alighieri wrote about the nine circles of hell in his masterpiece, Inferno: Limbo, Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Anger, Heresy, Violence, Fraud, and Treachery. With all due respect to Mr. Alighieri, I would like to add a tenth circle to this fiery chasm of doom: Norman, Oklahoma.

While other parts of the world suffer under much more extreme heat, my hometown in the heartland feels like I’m inside a convection oven delicately nestled inside a warming pan. In other words, it’s hot!