I ponder so many of the big life questions at this time of year. Like why do they keep making bags and bags of candy corn every fall? Its almost as if no one has ever tasted it. Or how is it possible that a squirrel that has figured out how to get around a sophisticated squirrel deterrent system on my bird feeders has not figured out that its no match against the SUV barreling down my street?
But the question I wrestle with the most, and which never has a satisfactory answer, is: When is it acceptable to turn on the heat in our house?
It's a sensitive topic that, if brought up around family or friends, is as likely to lead to a genteel discussion as asking their thoughts about politics or religion or Tom Brady. Some people like to play a game of thermostat chicken by seeing how long they can go before flipping the switch on the furnace, and some people just like to be comfortable.
I wont tell you which camp I fall into, but I will say that the peer pressure around this issue can be brutal. Which is why my house currently doubles as a cryogenics lab, I no longer have feeling in my toes, and Im anxiously awaiting the arrival of October when I will quietly turn on the heat. Dont tell anyone.
Ever since the temperatures turned colder, especially at night (theres no such thing as a gradual change of seasons in our area of the country), I have been counting down the days until September will be over. Of course, this made me think of my parents, who always told me when I was growing up that I should never wish away time. They also would have told me to put on another sweater.
They have a point (about time, anyway). Were always in a hurry to rush time along in order to get to the next thing. If you dont believe me, just ask anybody who loves pumpkin spice to tell you when autumn begins. Youll get answers that range all the way from the day after the Fourth of July to July 6th. I could live out the rest of my days without ever tasting, smelling, or seeing a pumpkin-spiced anything and go to my deathbed knowing Id lived a complete and happy life without regrets, but I get their point, too. When you want something like, for instance, a temperature in your home thats warm enough to support life it shouldnt matter what the calendar says.
And yet, when it comes to turning on the heat, the date is a more important consideration than how cold it is in our house. At least to me. Thats because Im shallow and easily cave to peer pressure. Being able to dish out what Mother Nature throws our way is a kind of badge of honor in our part of the world. To take my mind off the nip in the air, I tell myself that I have lived most of my life in upstate New York and can handle this, unlike anyone who lives more than 50 miles south of here and has thin blood. And I tell myself that waiting to turn on the natural gas-fired furnace is better for the environment. I also tell myself that I will be glad for these temperatures in March. Then I tell myself that making these kinds of justifications is an early warning sign of frostbite.
You may wonder if there is some huge struggle over the thermostat in our home at the moment, with one of us being right about wanting to turn on the heat and the other one of us being my husband. But, in fact, the subject of a comfortable temperature for mammals that dont hibernate has yet to come up this season. Which is weird, because he doesnt like being cold any more than I do. As our home gets chillier and chillier, though, he remains oddly unfazed. Maybe he has turned on the furnace with his mind and no one else is aware of it.
Or maybe the more likely scenario is, now that were empty nesters, we need things to fill our time and a thermostat death match seems as good an activity as any. Who is tougher: the one who was raised in New York, or the one from Massachusetts? Time will tell, but one of us is bound to crack soon, especially now that its October. It really doesnt matter who, because once were warm, well be happy. That is, until one of us brings up Tom Brady.
Betsy Bitner is a Capital Region writer. bbitner1@nycap.rr.com.
Go here to see the original:
Betsy Bitner: In thermostat battles, it's survival of the toughest - Times Union
Recommendation and review posted by G. Smith
