With the dog days of summer officially here, it's time to turn up the heat on this daily tome. Before you linguistics professors start sending me the dictionary definition of "tome" be advised I am referring to a cutting device. Yes, cutting straight to the point with today's news. Which I have already failed to do, ironically enough. Anywho, wouldn't it blow — or not blow, I suppose — to have your air conditioning fail in this heat? Well, it's happening to the tune of about 130 calls a day in our area right now. ... Fire crews are successfully turning down the heat on regional fires. ... Reporter Dee Riggs has a story on what happens to the stuff that once was hot crime evidence. ... Tracy Warner writes about coal trains heading this way, thanks to an over-heated overseas market. ... Reporter K.C. Mehaffey has a heart-warming story about a boy who got to meet firefighters on his fifth birthday. ... The AppleSox remain — you guessed it — hot. Thought for the day: If you think you're hot, get over yourself. — Cal FitzSimmons