Play it Cool--But Not Too Cool

Inspired by this Dangerous Intersection post about cost-saving measures in Japan, I would like to take the opportunity to whine about a long-standing peeve of mine: icy-cold interiors in summer.

I am willing to accept that I may need to wear sweaters indoors in the winter. When it's 95 degrees outside, however, I do not really wish to wear a sweater indoors.

I am often faintly annoyed by the fact that I have to remember to carry a sweater or other form of warm outer garment with me when I go out, because you never know when you'll find yourself in a place where the air conditioning is turned down to 65. Sometimes I forget, and then I wind up chilled and shivering. Indoors. In the summer.

I tell you, it's unnatural! Also, it makes me cranky.

In addition, as the (briefly, before I began to whine) referenced post above mentions, it's expensive to chill interior environments to Arctic temperatures. And who can afford to fling money around like confetti in these trying times?

It's in everyone's best interests to let things warm up a bit: this is totally not just something I'm obsessed about because I can't remember to carry a jacket.

Now I'm not arguing for everyone just hanging out and sweating stoically because by gum that's what our hardy ancestors did. They would have leapt on AC if they'd had the chance. In fact they did, as soon as they did have the chance, and here we are. (I like to remind myself that our long-suffering forebears couldn't have been all that wise and noble and virtuous--they produced us, after all.)

But it doesn't have to be actually cold inside, does it? Certainly it doesn't have to be colder inside in the summer than in the winter, which I swear sometimes it is here. It's as if the thermostat is set not so much for a comfortable temperature, as for a certain minimum numbers of degrees' difference from the outside.

I just wish for a little moderation. Surely it can be cool enough inside to keep from crushing the will to live, without being cold enough to immobilize reptiles.

Although that may prove a useful side effect should lizardfolk ever try to invade my place of work on one of its more enthusiastic AC days. And since I am ever wary of the threatening advances of the lizardfolk, I shouldn't overlook this complicating factor in my general temperature-related complaining.