As I write this entry, it has been over a week since we have had air conditioning. At this time of the year, that may not always be a big deal, but we have had several days over 90 degrees Fahrenheit, and they were pretty darn uncomfortable. There was a night spent in a different location. There was a night spent in the basement. I wasn’t so much worried about my husband and me, but I could hardly stand seeing my little one so restless and unable to sleep. Luckily, we did get a new air conditioner installed yesterday, so now we can go back to enjoying the luxury I pretty much took for granted.
And that is the key thing for me – taking it for granted. When you think about it, air conditioning has not been around that long, and it is something that not a lot of people even have. Not only have I enjoyed air conditioning all of my life, but I am pretty sure I am more intolerant of extremes in temperature because of it. Air conditioning has made me wimpy, but I still look at it as a necessity.
Experiencing life without air conditioning when it is nice to have it has definitely been a case of not knowing what you have until it’s gone. And boy, did I miss it. Right now, I am all about gratitude for it and understanding that it is a luxury that most people don’t have. I’m pretty lucky. My guess is that life will go on and I will forget about it, but I hope not. I hope that this helps me to expand my gratitude and focus more on all of the things that I take for granted. Air conditioning is only one of many, many things I am fortunate enough to have in my life.