Blog Update!
For those of you not following me on Facebook, as of the Summer of 2019 I've moved to Central WA, to a tiny mountain town of less than 1,000 people.

I will be covering my exploits here in the Cascades, as I try to further reduce my impact on the environment. With the same attitude, just at a higher altitude!

Friday, November 5, 2010

Biggest issue with turning down the heat

One of the questions that Teresa Yuan from King 5 television asked me yesterday morning when she came to interview me about this year's Freeze Yer Buns Challenge was what is the biggest issue that people have with turning down their thermostat? That question, coupled with what questions do most people have about lowering the temperature, got me wondering what you think.

For most of the general public, the issue is really just wanting to live at a comfortable 70+ degrees. But, a lot of you in the past have said it was trying to convince others that live in your house to turn the heat down. Then there are issues of moisture and mold if it's too cold and concerns of freezing pipes and freezing babies, toddlers and sensitive pets.

So, what's your biggest concern with turning down the heat? I know it's not saving too much money.

If you still haven't signed up yet for this year's Freeze Yer Buns Challenge, git to it!

And make sure you check back this Sunday, I'm doing a huge energy saving giveaway courtesy of The Home Depot! I know, I know, but this one is worth it...

54 comments:

EngineerChic said...

For me, it's the awful feeling of getting out of the shower and freezing to death (or so it seems) in 65 degrees. And/Or the way I get chilled when I change from work clothes to home clothes if it's 65 degrees.

I'm fine when I'm fully clothed, but anything that requires changing clothes is shiver-inducing which - I swear - stays with me for at least 30 min.

Jess said...

I'm INCREDIBLY sensitive to the cold. In temperatures where other people are comfortably wearing short sleeves and shorts, I already have my fuzzy socks on and hoodie with hood done up. My hands freeze all winter. AC in public places in the summer is the bane of my existence; it means I never leave the house without a cardigan of some sort, even on 95+ degree days.

According to various doctors, my thyroid is functioning just fine because the numbers are in the "normal" range. No one can explain the level of sensitivity I have to the cold. I'm 26; this is not normal. But for me, freezing my "buns" is about the worst thing imaginable since you can only put on so much extra clothing. When the house is cold, I don't leave my bed. And I sleep with a minimum of 3 comforters, including a down one, at all times.

Anna Marie said...

I would have to agree about getting out of the shower into a cold room! I've also taken to wearing a whole lot more clothing- just because otherwise, I am uncomfortably chilly.

Anonymous said...

I'm like Jess - COLD. I will wear a full set of long johns,a fleece, a sweatshirt, a hat and gloves and scarf and still be cold. Like cold where I'm tense and shivery. Sometimes my daughter's lips turn blue. We never have it down past 67. I'd love to go lower, but I don't see how to do it with me and the youngest being so sensitive to it.

Anonymous said...

For me it is all the extra clothing required. I like sweater and sweatshirts, but I don't like to wear many many layers. I feel weighed down while my body just wants to be free to move. I prefer to lounge around the house in a t-shirt and pajama pants only. Don't get me wrong, I hate the heat and wearing shorts, too.

Anonymous said...

I lived in Japan for 4 months in high school and once November started and I realized that, despite the fact that it will go down to 30F and snow by the time I left around Christmas, we did not have any central heating whatsoever. Instead, we used little "stoves," or portable gas heaters to heat their rooms. My family could not understand why we heated rooms that no one was in.

I'm not saying that I love to get out of the shower and feel that it's cold, but I can think at least of time when it was colder. (Like riding your bike to school in your pleated skirt when there is snow on the ground.)

All that aside, my heat still has not been turned on at all, and it still says it is between 65-68 in here.

Unknown said...

I have two issues really. One being our ferrets. Our tiny fuzzy creatures. They get winter coats and manage to keep themselves fairly warm, but if their room wasn't over the heater in the basement, I'd probably have a harder time turning our thermostat down. I also don't turn it way down while we're gone because of them and the dog.
Second issue is myself. Sometimes I get really cold. My hands and my nose especially. And when my nose and the rest of my head get cold, I get a terrible headache. I've taken to wearing a hat to bed!

Sara K said...

My issue is with moisture in my house. With my thermostat set at 54-58 at night, I have frost on the inside of my wood windows on really cold days. I hate the idea of turning up the heat so I don't have frost (or ice) on the inside. These are even new windows so I am doubly unhappy to see my stained and varnished frames water damaged.

Nic, SD said...

Biggest issue? Husband. No extra weight on him.
We HAVE moved his computer desk away from the windows, though, and over to the other side of that room, this year. It's already had an impact. (Although temps have only gotten down to about 20, and in South Dakota, they will drop much lower.)
He'll still be the setback, though. He's always the one asking if we can turn the AC/heat on. It's, more or less, all the same, to me.

kai said...

Much below 65 and my hands stop working. I'm in my early 30s, but had a good 10 years of working outside with metals tools and wet hands in all temperatures, plus some previously broken fingers, and when my hands are cold I drop a lot of stuff and can't flex my fingers well.

I have a microwave heat pad I stick on my back - it warms 'me up well. And I wear a fleece vest almost all the time. If my core stays warm, the rest of 'me does too.

We have an electric wall heater in the bathroom. Our guilty indulgence is to crank that up during showers. Helps with moisture and I hate seeing my kid shiver in the tub (cast iron tub cold almost all day makes a hot bath tepid in mere minutes).

We do have a moisture problem. I hate that. We have good windows, but get a lot of condensation anyway.

Anna @ Blue Dirt said...

To Angela: We have ferral ferrets here due to a neighbors house fire years ago. They seem to have no problem surviving Minnesota winters outside on their own.

I am the reason it's hard to turn down the heat. I get cold very easily and my fingers actually turn white/grey. My husband and boys are all like furnaces, but I have poor circulation.

Unknown said...

My husband's biggest issue is plain old comfort. He'll throw in the towel a good 5* before me. I think it's because he doesn't want to wear a hoodie or drag a blanket around with him indoors. I mostly tell him to man up.

We do have a couple of dogs who weren't gifted with much coat though, and I can't just let them freeze inside. They're content to nap under blankets, but it has to be comfortable enough for roaming and play time. That's they're biggest issue, but it's an issue for me too.

My personal biggest issue is wet hair. I have a space heater that works great to make our tiny bathroom tolerable for showers, but I have long thick hair that takes a while to dry. I refuse to blow-dry because it would damage my hair and eat up more energy. I also can't just sit in the warm bathroom until it dries. So I end up walking around the house with wet hair, which is ridiculously uncomfortable in the cold. I'm lucky not to have to wash it very often, but I can't go all winter.

Anonymous said...

My biggest problem is that if it is less than 68-70, my hands and nose (especially nose) get cold and my nose runs. I am content to bundle up with blankets for warmth, whether watching tv, reading, or adding more blankets to the bed, but in general, the cold nose and hands drives me crazy and I can't just wear a scarf and gloves in the house. If it weren't for those two things, I'd keep the thermostat lower.

Dmarie said...

BIGGEST issue: I can't get my butt out of bed when the room's too cold! Sooo hard to convince myself to get out from under nice warm quilts. Once I'm up, it's okay.

Adrienne said...

I don't really have too many problems with it... I keep the thermostat at 62 and use space heaters if I'm really freezing. I think my biggest issue is the crappy, no storm windows, you can practically feel the cold air pouring in, windows in my apartment. I'm going to put that shrink-wrap stuff on some of them this year, but the biggest problem is the sliding glass door and I don't know what I can do about that.

swiggett said...

Probably the bone chilling cold that results from stepping out of the shower, or changing clothes. (Although, in the bathroom, our fan also has a heater function. Beautiful!)

Also, want to make sure our dog doesn't freeze!

Luisa said...

My biggest issue is if we keep it that low is that my nose and hands gets cold and I actually start to come down with a cold. We actually don't turn the heat yet during the day just a couple of hours at night no higher than 68.
I don't mind the layers it's a good reason to knit and crochet more.

Jennifer said...

Jess, I'm with you. Right now, we are doing 65 in the day and 57 at night, with occasional bumps up for company or wimpiness. But I am like you. I was cold this August; I have always gone outside in the summer to stand on the pavement to let the heat sink into my feet. I wear fleece socks in the summer. I currently have two quilts and a husband that acts like a space heater in the bed, and I still heat up a bed warmer. And my doctor swears my thyroid is fine.

Two Flights Down said...

Mine is a circulation problem. Once I'm hot or cold, I tend to overheat or I'm chilled to the bone. It's like my body's thermostat doesn't work properly. And it's more than discomfort... when I get what others are feeling as a chill, my hands turn colors and I can't move my fingers, my toes are practically numb, and even if I get under a pile of blankets, I can't get warm again. It's very painful on the joints, and I used to have teachers who would have me run my hands under hot water before violin/piano lessons so I could actually play almost decently. When my hands get like that, I can put them in hot water and not feel it for a long time.

One thing that's helped, which I picked up when central heat was no longer an option, was a hot bath at night before going to bed. In the area I lived, everyone did this to survive the cold at night. Soaking in the tub allowed my body to eventually get warm again and stay warm long enough to get under the covers and trap the heat in.

I know it takes energy to heat water, but we had a different type of water heater that didn't actually hold water and keep it hot. It was this little box that only clicked on when you turned the hot water on in the faucet. It somehow instantly heated the water. Not sure how it worked, but it was wonderful--and our bill for water and gas were both very cheap.

Anyone know what these water heaters are called?

Olivia said...

Like some of the others I just can't take the cold. Fingers and feet go numb and I am just miserable. Can't function. I can take any amount of heat - I have never had air conditioning in my life (and we used to live in Southern Ontario where summer temps are often mid 30's (Celsius) with humidex or even higher. I even used to do canning in that weather and loved it.) I rarely wear shorts or t-shirts, even in summer.

But the cold . . . impossible, no matter how much clothing I wear.

Still - we only use our furnace for heating the basement (about 10 Celsius) so walls don't crack nor pipes freeze and instead, rely on our wood cookstove for heat.

Brad K. said...

Crunchy,

I just turned on the heat last night (it had been set on "cool" - at 88 degrees).

A few days back I got up, and thought, "Wow, this feels comfortable!" I checked the thermometer - 70 degrees. A couple of days later I through back the sheet and blanket, and thought "Woof! Cold!" 68 degrees. Last night the thermal inertia inside (daytime heating vs. outside air/wind cooling) was at 57 degrees.

I have shifted to my winter approach: White t-shirt, heavy weight t-shirt, long sleeve work shirt. I have some long sleeve t-shirts waiting for cold days.

I look forward to getting out of the shower even on cold days - I turned off the water heater 18 months ago. It is turning on the shower - even though I *know* the water tank is near "room temp" - that I dread. I don't think I could face stepping into the running water - I start out right under the shower head, with the water hitting my hair first. Umph.

Sleeping cold can be a problem. I read that keeping cotton socks on at night can be a big plus. The added warmth of the feet improves blood circulation in the legs, reducing strain on the heart. It also tackles one of the biggies of cool sleeping, cold or clammy feet.

Bedroom slippers and fingerless gloves can make being inside more comfortable, too.

I found that flannel sheets make a tremendous difference in sleeping comfortably, winter or even summer. And for those worried about fats, keep in mind that lots of fiber is good, and a healthy diet requires 30% of calories come from fat sources. More isn't better, but too little isn't good - or good for keeping warm. And sugar is temporary - you get the spike in blood sugar, and warmth, but then an exaggerated and extended valley leaves you low and cold.

In the Navy, I served on an aircraft carrier for a time. The berthing space, in port, could get nippy, though we only had frost on the floor once that I recall - and we were only allowed one blanket. A standard, military issue Army wool blanket. I found that an extra sheet on top of the blanket was about as effective - and less weight - than a second blanket. Today I may have a couple blankets, a sheet, and another blanket, on cold nights. Works for me. I might point out that using lots of blankets - or especially comforters - adds weight - which can interfere with blood circulation. After a few hours less blood circulation may contribute to feeling colder.

I can identify with the cold hands and fingers. I find there are a couple of T'ai Chi moves with arms and upper body that release tremendous amounts of warmth and energy. It is sitting or moving quietly that has the body cut back on providing warmth to the extremities.

I avoid iced drinks anyway, but a cup of hot tea (no caffeine or alcohol when cold) can help keep me more comfortable.

Yoga doesn't offer much immediate benefit, it doesn't help me feel warmer. But I think it does help me be aware of my body, and improves strength and flexibility (as well as help manage pain).

As for perceptions - I find little makes my home feel warmer, than coming in from the cold and windy outside.

A said...

Mine is getting out of bed and getting going in the morning. I take at least a half hour longer to get ready in the morning when I feel cold. Later in the day it doesn't bother me anywhere near as much.

Dea-chan said...

Getting out of bed. I hate doing it anyways, but when it's cold in the apartment (it warms up during the day from the amount of sun it gets), I'm like Calvin and only want to get up 'when it's as warm out there as it is [in bed]'.

Billie said...

Last year it was my husband. This year it might be my cat. I have a Devon Rex kitten that doesn't have much hair so I believe that she can get cold easier.

My goal is to keep the heat around 64 or 65 degrees. So far, my house hasn't dropped that low since the heat was turned on so I haven't even had a chance to test if the thermostat for the furnace is set correctly.

Mrs Mallard said...

We're in Oregon and mold can be a pretty big issue, especially around the windows (and in the bathroom and under the mattress and on people that sit still too long). Beyond that, we have a toddler who has a rather acute reaction to chilly indoor temps (she turns purple and scares the jeepers right out of me) and bread that won't rise. I don't like to be cold, but I'm finally getting in the habit of putting on a sweatshirt, rather than turning up the heat. I looked at my closet the other day and realized I have zero long-sleeved shirts, other than the ones I sleep in. How'd that happen?!

Two Flights Down--it sounds like you had a tankless water heater and now I'm jealous!

Anonymous said...

Stiff aching joints that require medication or turning up the heat = turning up the heat. Sinus migraines that require medication or turning up the heat = turning up the heat.

I don't do this challenge. I tried one year and it was miserable. I hope I don't ever *have* to suffer through winters being too cold. I'll be one of those people always swathed in scarves and mittens if so. Which I'll hate, because I can't get a flipping thing done with stuff wrapped all over me.

MadameMim said...

My biggest issue is my ex lecturing me on the freezing house being bad for our 5 year old. This is the same man who thinks 68 degrees is reasonable for the summer months.

And the shower thing. I solve that by turning the heat up when I get in the shower and opening the bathroom vent all the way. Close the doors and by the end of the shower, it's warm. Then get dressed, cut the heat back down, and you're not chilled. I was actually talking about doing this just yesterday.

dc said...

Showering in a cold bathroom, that's why I'm getting a little efficient space heater to warm the bathroom before showers.

@ Jess I just had a friend visiting whose thyroid numbers were in the normal range but her doc did a further test and found out she has Hashimoto's Thyroiditis. With this condition you blood level are fine but your body doesn't absorb the ?thyroxine. Might be worth having it checked out.

Sarah C said...

Having to listen to my 33 year old husband who weighs 70 lbs more than me bitch like a little girl about being cold.

Here's an idea sweetie; put some clothes on and stop walking around in your damn underwear!

www.beingfrugalbychoice.blogspot.com

Kristijoy said...

In Portland so, moisture would be a problem but we use a dehumidifier the bathroom, this also keeps it warm! Turn it on before the hot water and buy the time you are out it's 75...love it. We turn it off when the shower curtain is dry. If it were just me I would probably just use the vent fan but my partner has mold issues and moisture management is huge.

The futon mattress gets flipped every month and has a moisture barrier on it.

Space heater in the AM/pm will help with dressing at bedtime and mornings.

I get cold, but I have worked out ways to keep warm, hot beverages, knit myself fingerless gloves, etc.

have not had a problem with freezing pipes, we do keep to 55 all day and night and the house is very well insulated with storm windows and such.

Still have the heat off actually, haven't lit the furnace quite yet. The house is still in the 60-65 range.

Anonymous said...

The biggest challenge at our house is our wimpy pug who shivers if the temps fall below 65. I am a sahm so I just put his coat on him during the day. Our house warms up in the afternoon with everyone moving around and dinner being made. Also just after Christmas we are going to be welcoming our third child and I am not sure it will be safe for me to maintain 62 degrees in the house but it certainly won't be 70 either. I'll be knitting up some wonderfull wool blankets for her.

Rosa said...

My boyfriends worry that the cats will get cold. I tell him they are lucky they don't live outdoors.

My real biggie is that we both work from home, and it's easy to get chilled sitting here at our computers. So I take breaks and run on the treadmill. But then I wonder - between teh bathroom space heater and the treadmill and turning up the heat twice a month for guests, are we saving any energy?

Vegetable Garden Cook said...

Mold and dust mite proliferation. They thrive under 74, and I'm allergic and have asthma.

But I use a woodstove, with wood that we've gathered from our own property from felled trees. So I don't worry about the temperature.

When I lived in the city, we installed a woodstove in our home. We never bought wood... instead, it was all provided for us by nearby woodworkers who kept bins out of scrap wood, along with free cut up pallets and other misc. free wood. You can even have pipes installed in the woodstove to heat your hot water.

Brad K. said...

Anna,

"my fingers actually turn white/grey". The last time I saw this, was a lady that didn't drink much water according to Weigh Watchers's measure (4 pints - 16 oz each - each day, and nothing with sugar, caffeine, or chocolate in it counts). You have to be drinking enough water to stay warm.

(I grew up in NW Iowa, have a sister in St. James, MN, and I spend 18 months - two winters - in Minneapolis, so I pay attention to things related to cold.)

@ Crunchy - I wonder if people with wood or gas heat (vented) have an issue with moisture? The air seems to circulate better, and the fire tends to lift the cooler/moister air and vents it out the chimney.

Enjoy!

Jennie said...

Yea, the brief moments in-between fully clothed states are chilly.

Toddler worries top my list. He has to get half naked dozens of times a day, and while space heater can take up some of the slack, it's still an issue that needs to be handled.

Lesli said...

Being so cold that I have stiff fingers, don't want to get out of bed, and dread exiting the shower top my list of issues. On the fingers, I often wear fingerless gloves in the house, and almost always have a hot cuppa something going. On getting out of bed, I have our thermostat timer set to go up a degree for about 15 minutes right when we are getting up in the morning, and that heat blowing out to get that one degree higher makes a big difference. On showers, I make them super hot (but still super fast), and then just run for it. I also keep a towel wrapped around my head/hair as long as possible afterward. For the kids, I'll turn the heat up slightly when they're showering...seeing my littles wet, blue, and shivering isn't fun, and they can't stand having the shower as hot as I can.

Robj98168 said...

My biggest concern is freezing out my dog and cat... The humans here can get up and turn up a thermostat if they absouletly cannot stand the cold any more. But th epoor dog and cat cannot. Damn opposible thumbs.

Lisa Nelsen-Woods said...

1. Getting out of the shower when it's 58 degrees outside. 2. 1. Getting out of the shower when you don't have heat during a weeklong winter blackout (screw you Polar Bear Club! 3. Hearing my husband kevetch that 58 degrees is too cold. 4. My in laws polite inquires as to why I keep my condo so cold - do we have enough money? (yes) My condo at 58 with all of the air leaks sealed up is warmer than their drafty house with the heat supposidily jacked.

Mimi said...

Last year I cut my heat way done...In past winters I had the heat at like 78 degrees....last year I stayed around 72-68 degrees and froze...and MY HEAT BILL WENT UP....

robbie said...

My husband, plain and simple.

Susan Och said...

We also have problems with condensation on the windows. We're at 50 at night, 60 during the day, and the window frames are wet all winter.

I understand that in Germany they have devices that exhaust humidity from the house while retaining the heat.

Susan Och said...

....But we have a 2 hour period in the mornings when the heat goes to 65 so everyone can get up and get going.

We're on a balanced billing plan and in the last five years I've cut our monthly payment for natural gas (heat, cooking, and dryer) from $80 to $40.

Corinne said...

It is my husband. He had the heat at 73 when I woke up this morning. I can't talk him into keeping it turned down. And then I feel like a nag.

Anonymous said...

Our problem is my husband's teenage children who think they have the right to adjust the thermostat. We usually keep the house 68-65 in the winter. One day this early fall we came home from work and couldn't figure out why is was sooo hot in the house. Hubby's daughter had turned it up to 78 because she was cold when she got home. She was in her cold room with the door shut and clothes piled on top of the vent! I think we need to get one of those lockable covers for the thermostat like they have in offices.

Tressa

Sonja said...

My biggest concern are my hands. I just can't go below 20 degrees Celsius because then they turn to ice and the bones hurt. No way I'm enduring that if I don't absolutely have to.

historicstitcher said...

My biggest problem is the mold in the bathroom. The vent just isn't strong enough to pull all that steam out, and I end up scrubbing the black spots out of the corners between the ceiling and the walls.

My second biggest problem is my mother, who doesn't even live with me. She complains every time she comes over that it's "too chilly in here" and "it's not good for the house to be this cold."

My third biggest problem is my exchange student from northern Russia. While she grew up in the Arctic Circle, she's having a difficult time with a chilly indoor temp - she was wearing 3 sweaters yesterday, and it was 60F inside and out!

My fourth biggest problem is that my Christmas wine is FAR TOO SLOW this year! It's like trying to make yogurt in the cold - it doesn not work well!

I haven't turned on the furnace yet this fall, though I probably will soon just to make sure everything works properly before the first deep freeze.

Concrete Gardener said...

Three Issues: I have to keep my five month old son, and I feel terrible when I'm changing him or taking him to the potty and I know my hands are freezing.

Second: i totally relate to the people who struggle to get out of the shower. I have to have a plan (run to the living room and get dressed really quickly), or else I just want to stay in there forever.

Third: Feeling like a bad host = we usually turn up the thermostat when we have friends over.

Amy in Tacoma said...

I don't think I have much choice about this challenge. We are not homeowners and the heating system where we live is old and inefficient. We can't afford to pay the outrageous bills we have when we don't turn the heat down.

Last year, we huddled in the same rooms and moved some small space heaters around--to the bathroom during shower/bath times, to the bedrooms for about an hour before bed, and to the family room during the bulk of the evening.

It worked out OK until March. I think by then I was just sick of feeling cold all the time, and all the warm layers I wore no longer seemed to do the trick. So I hope I can emotionally do this again this year.

Bullwinkle said...

Biggest issue = the logic problem of the man needing it 65 in the summer but 72 in the winter.

I've nudged the (programmable) thermostat down to 68. He hasn't noticed, yet.

Bullwinkle said...

Sorry for double comment -

68 for the hours we're home. We still have it at 60 when not home or overnight. And the temp goes down 2 hours before leaving the house -- that makes him get to work on time ;)

Brad K. said...

I wonder. Back in the day, before central heat had thermostats, parents used "bathinettes". Counter top contrivances, often with a rubber sheet to hold water and baby, with a cover, sometimes. Unlike a metal sink or basin, the rubber wouldn't conduct chill, and let the water stay warm a bit longer in a cool to cold room. Doing the bathing for baby on the counter top meant that the process could be finished quickly, and baby dried, dressed, and covered again before chilling. And it didn't take heating a whole tub of water, back when that was an issue.

I see they are still made, but pricey at $150 or so, as in the "Baby Diego Bathinette Baby Bath & Changing Table Combo" at ToysRUs.com.

As for portable heaters, when heating one room - I find I am in the minority. Several neighbors tried the oil-filled radiator room heater, and hated them. I love mine, but then I am looking for a warmer room, not a "burn the feet" hot spot. Mine cost about $50, a DeLonghi. Lots of air circulation through the passive radiating fins. The heat is gentle, and constant, with the heating element kicking in when needed, and the oil carrying the heat between times it fires up - pretty efficient and quiet. Just not "effective" if you are looking for a concentrated heat ray and think that is effective in warming the room.

Dan at Cold House Journal said...

After two plus winters of living with a house often in the 50º's, and a bedroom often in the low 40º's, I feel that there aren't many big issues left with it. I've adjusted to many of the "obstacles", and even come to find some of them pleasant and invigorating. The one thing I just can't get used to, though, is the feeling of my warms hands on my cold aluminum laptop. There's a reason they make the bottom of cooking pans aluminum... conducts heat all too well. This winter I may fashion some insulating pads. But I'd suggest plastic laptops for cold-house dwellers. Other than that, the only remaining problem really is interpersonal-- the two of us agree, now, to live colder than almost anyone we know, but still one of use could stand it colder than the other.

Maggie Sullivan said...

I'm finding it easier than last year and I think there are a couple reasons:
1. We are in a contest to win a free solar panel by reducing our energy usage and that's pretty motivating.
2. We insulated a lot of air gaps last year, especially in the bedroom, so now it's cold but not breezy.
3. We figured out the right combination of blankets to stay warm in bed when it's 52 in the house (flannel sheets, one comforter, one blanket, one "topper" sheet).
4. I've been exercising more and I really think it has helped my blood circulation a lot.

I just hope I still feel this way in February!

Laura said...

Like others have said, mine is getting out of bed in the morning. I love being all bundled up in bed... it's hard knowing that I'm about to leave all that coziness AND that I'm leaving coziness to go to work! ;)

But, we haven't turned the heat on yet, which I think means we're doing better than last year! So far it hasn't been a problem - the lowest the house has been is 60, and that was first thing in the morning. We opened the blinds and it warmed up a few degrees fairly quickly.