Changing the Climate (at least at home)

Do you and your spouse get along when it comes to the thermostat? I have to tell you that as a meteorologist you'd think I'd be in complete "climate control", but that's not the case! Earlier this week I waxed on about how wonderful low temperatures in the upper 50s around the Upstate would feel. And it's true - near record morning lows - so if you were out early in the morning you were in for a treat. What I didn't explain well enough to my husband is that it takes all night for the air to reach that overnight low! Unlike the winter months when the temperature can drop rapidly, the cooldown is slow - even after rare summer cold fronts - during the night.

So I arrived home that evening to a really stuffy house! "Wow! It's awfully warm in here!" I stated matter of factly. "You said that temperatures would be in the 50s so I turned off the A/C and opened all the windows" my husband said, equally as matter of factly. "Hmmm.", I thought. "I'd better start explaining that the cool low temperatures I'm bragging about won't happen until just before sunrise." But it was too late. The house had slowly warmed from the residual daytime heating, and I was uncomfortable.

I'm in the last stretch of the pregnancy, so I'm always warm. Unfortunately when the A/C is on it blows right into Ryan's face, so he'd much rather have the windows open, or even the ceiling fan blowing. I think he felt sorry for me, though, because after a brief protest of how the air conditioning freezes him out, he disappeared into the hallway.

Suddenly I heard that familiar faint hum that echoed through the house. YEA! He turned on the A/C! It took a little while, but the house eventually cooled to a more bearable temperature. It was only down to around 75, but it was very refreshing! I really appreciated him doing that.

As Ryan has said in the past, "If Mama's not happy, ain't nobody happy"...especially when "Mama" is 8 months pregnant!

Have you had similar experiences? Are you the one that's always too hot or too cold at home?

As an aside, the coolest low temperature on record at GSP during the month of August was a refreshing 52 degrees. This happened on the 29th back in 1968...uh...of course it took all night for the low to drop to that! So while the occasional modest cold front will stagger through the Western Carolinas from time to time in the summer, keep in mind that it's not so much late at night than it is in the early morning when you'll be able to enjoy the cooler air.