HOW will you remember China's summer of 2010 - roasting, grilling or frying?

Apart from the sweat, the heat and the humidity, the sweltering weather is likely to be remembered for one other thing - the barrage of online metaphors to describe the discomfort.

In time-honored Chinese style, people are turning to culinary traditions.

"I feel like a piece of meat in an oven," said a posting from "Doudoutang" in Beijing yesterday.

Another Beijinger under the name "Wind" said of the city's infamous "sauna weather," "I feel I am frying in oil under the sun."

And from Xi'an in the west came a more exotic comparison: "Even sleeping on the bamboo mat, I still feel like a piece of teppan beef," wrote "Stranger A" on Douban.com.

Others simply described how the heat destroyed their snack of choice: "Is the air boiling? I saw my lollipop melt in my hand," said a mournful "Yi'ou," in Shanghai.

The hot weather turned into a hot topic as Internet commentators across the country, from north to south, scrambled to express their distress.

A heat wave has continued in Beijing since last Friday, the city recording more than 10 days with temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius this month, said the National Meteorological Center of China.

"The sauna weather has blasted north China cities for days, bringing high humidity and little relief at night," said Yang Guiming, the center's chief forecaster.

In Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, the weather has become as reliable as an alarm clock.

"I used to sleep in, but today the heat simply woke me up at 7am," said an online posting by "Zhe."

The heat wave continued yesterday with temperatures exceeding 35 degrees Celsius in 18 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, according to the National Meteorological Center.

Some areas in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Gansu Province and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, all in north China, topped 40 degrees.

Many online postings appealed for a return of the legendary Chinese hero Hou Yi, who saved the Earth from withering under 10 suns by shooting down nine of them.

• yesterday [´jestədi] n.&ad.昨天；前不久 (初中英语单词)
• comparison [kəm´pærisən] n.比较；对照；比喻 (初中英语单词)
• sleeping [´sli:piŋ] n.&a.睡着(的) (初中英语单词)
• distress [di´stres] n.痛苦 vt.使苦恼 (初中英语单词)
• relief [ri´li:f] n.救济；援救；减轻 (初中英语单词)
• province [´prɔvins] n.省；领域；范围 (初中英语单词)
• bamboo [,bæm´bu:] n.竹 (高中英语单词)
• southwest [,sauθ´west] n.&a.西南(方)(的) (高中英语单词)
• reliable [ri´laiəbl] a.可靠的；可信赖的 (高中英语单词)
• mournful [´mɔ:nful] a.令人沮丧的 (英语四级单词)
• exceeding [ik´si:diŋ] a.超越的，非常的 (英语四级单词)
• humidity [hju:´miditi] n.湿气；湿度 (英语六级单词)
• discomfort [dis´kʌmfət] n.不适；不安；困难 (英语六级单词)
• infamous [´infəməs] a.声名狼藉的 (英语六级单词)