Afghanistan must be one of the hottest places on earth at this time of year. And Helmand is one of its hottest provinces. And the hottest place in Helmand has to be the laundry room at the British base in Lashkar Gah.
I spent some time there at the end of last week trying to retrieve a bag of washing. On Wednesday alone, the laundry room was given 275 bags of dirty clothes and bed linen.
I know this for certain because only one of the 275 bags dropped off that day didn't have a name tag on it (mine). Nobody told me to put one on, but thinking about it ...
So I was rummaging around in a sauna-esque back-room trying to find it, with the help of the manager, a very patient man.
During our search, he told me that 275 bags in one day is by no means unusual.
He often deals with more than 300 bags a day, and his weekly record is 2007. Not that he's counting.
That's a lot of Persil. No wonder he smokes.
I needed the laundry bag because it contained my one long-sleeved shirt, which you have to wear when you fly on a Chinook, or any helicopter.
The reason? The sleeves help protect you from the debris that gets chucked up by the powerful down draft from the rotors.
The long sleeves also protect your skin from burning on any hot metal. Obvious, really.
I found this out as I was waiting for the flight back to Camp Bastion.
Because the helipad is the only place on the base which is an open space, loads of people use it as a running track, hot-footing it away when a helicopter is "wheels down" and about to land.
All this means it is time to leave Lashkar Gah. Which means I've had my last night, so I can now reveal there was a snorer.
A genuine tent-rattler, he was too.
At first I thought it was a Royal Marine officer in the bunk opposite, but now I am not so sure. After conferring with colleagues, I suspect one of the other reporters who came to cover transition.
The fella in question has form, apparently, and he's had a cold too. Which is very bad luck when you consider it has been pushing 45 degrees on some days this week.
