'Woke up sweating': Some Texans shocked to find their smart thermostats were raised remotely

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

44. Assuming you think 98 degrees in that half hour is pleasant.

And again, dressing for the climate really involves an air conditioned car.

I've lived in a variety of climates: northern NYS, Tucson, Washington DC, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Denver area, the Kansas City area, and now Santa Fe, NM.

Boulder, CO, was truly wonderful. We didn't need a/c which is my measure. Oh, and my first four years in DC I did not have a/c. When I told my son that recently, who now lives there, he was stunned into silence, and suddenly had a lot more respect for me.

When we moved to Phoenix, when our oldest was not yet a year old, we'd ask people why they'd moved there. For the weather, they'd immediately respond. Hmmm. Not sure what weather they were talking about. The outdoor lifestyle, that was also referenced might possibly have meant sitting around a pool, drinking margaritas. But in our small apartment complex, I was invariably the only one in the pool with my kid. And when I put him in the stroller and went to the park nearby, I was likewise the only mom there. Sad, truly sad.

When we moved to Boulder, there was a genuine outdoor lifestyle there. My son was in kindergarten, half day. In January of his kindergarten year we moms agreed that on Fridays we'd feed our own kids, then show up at a specific park, so the kids could play and the moms could chat. Starting in January, there were only two days we had to cancel because of weather, which tells you how amazingly benign the weather in Boulder was.

Here in Santa Fe, I can open windows and doors in the afternoons and evenings, close them mid-morning, and almost do without a/c. I'll confess that about three years ago I did install a/c, and I do appreciate it during the extremely short time its needed.