The Hot and Cold of It

I may have talked about this before..but who knows?

I have not felt cold since 1981..when I moved to Kansas. I grew up in Montana and Wyoming where winter temps were often at -18 below or worse. I recall several winters where the temp dropped to -40. It was warm if it was +18 degrees at Christmas. I recall many, many years of walking down the main street of Worland, Wyoming or Billings, Montana and seeing the Bank sign read, -22 (below zero). One winter in Worland, in the early 80's it was so damned cold that the National Guard had to come in to feed the cattle and sheep and fix the broken water lines in town. The temp that year was -55 degrees.

When I was about 19, I would walk about 12 blocks to work at about 5 a.m. when the bank sign showed -20. I had long johns on over my waitress uniform. It was normal for us..in the "cold country".

So..my point is this:

Dave came home from work today and said, "can you believe that our heater is not working?" He said he almost froze last night. I am like, "I had no idea our heater was not working..in fact, I turned on the fan before I got in bed last night". I started a fire for him...in the fireplace. We were sitting outside at 6 pm. He was shaking cold. I said, "how cold is it?" He says, "it is about 40 degrees out! Oh Lordie. That is spring temp where I come from!!

I shared with my husband that when he goes to work at 5 a.m., I hear him push the buttons on our alarm system. It wakes me up. When I hear him lock the door with his key...I get up and 'open the sash' and then snuggle down for a long winters nap...which lasts about 3 more hours. I love having the window wide open. I can sleep the best when the room is very cold. Hello??

When Dave first came to see me in West Sonoma County, I lived in a super lovely cabin with a wrap around porch...right in the middle of the Redwoods. My only heat was a huge rock fireplace in the living room.

The first night he spent there...I woke up to him shivering like a Holocaust victim. I had a heated mattress pad and a down comforter. He looked over at the window, where my cat Simon was..and saw his breath in the cold. I asked, "should I close the window"? He yells, "you mean the window is open?"

That is the hot and cold of our relationship. I am seriously thinking about decorating the front bedroom ..so I can sleep comfortably with a cold breeze and just one "down comforter"...I need my sleep. I so enjoy going to bed in a cold room. I cannot stand to sweat at night...can't stand it. Being "hot" for an hour or so is just fine......but I must sleep in a cool room!

Does anyone else relate to "hot and cold" sleeping issues?