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And not outside, either, where it is supposed to be, but at my computer desk. Which for reasons of access to phone jacks and power outlets has to be well away from the gas heater, which in any case isn't powerful enough for this size of room. Why oh why can't these Americans build houses with double glazing and proper insulation? With my quilt around my shoulders my core temperature is well enough, but my fingers are absolutely freezing, to the point of interfering with my typing. Posts: 10645 | Registered: Jul 2004
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Wait...how can it be cold...dude! It's 57 degrees F there. Aren't you from a place where it's colder?!
Posts: 14745 | Registered: Dec 1999
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Trust me, there ain't no 14 degrees outside where I live. And while Norway is certainly colder, Norway has houses with double-glazed windows, powerfully insulated walls, and more than one measly heater per room. And cheap electricity too, I might mention.
Posts: 10645 | Registered: Jul 2004
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Yes, jh, they are assuredly closed. Though with only one pane of glass in them, and no curtains, God knows how much good it does. I'm hanging bedsheets over them to keep the heat in.
Posts: 10645 | Registered: Jul 2004
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If you lived in a more civilized part of the United States, there would indeed be insulation. Palo Alto is our frontier, our hinterland, and the benefits of society have yet to trickle down to those poor unfortunates.
Posts: 37449 | Registered: May 1999
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Get thick plastic sheeting and duct tape to put up over the windows. Then either hang thick curtains or blankets.
A trip to your local hardware store will provide you with stripping to put in the door jambs.
Roll up towels or blankets to put against the lower portion of the doors.
Do 10 push-ups, 10 sit-ups and 100 jumping jacks for a break from the computer every 15 minutes.
Invest in wool socks, long johns, and those half-finger gloves. Wear a stocking cap and retain the heat.
Keep hot water boiling for tea. Warm tea mugs smell nice and make for happy fingers.
Hmmm . . . let's see - what else can cold-blooded individuals do to survive frigid temps . . . *grin*
Posts: 5609 | Registered: Jan 2003
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How can it be that cold? I only live 20 minutes from you and it's too hot in my house unless the windows are slightly open.
Posts: 155 | Registered: Apr 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Bella Bee: Turn the air con down, maybe?
Don't laugh too hard, Bella. The high here in Fresno yesterday was 60 degrees, and my next-door neighbor had his air conditioner blasting yesterday morning when I took the trash out (well before it reached the day's high temperature). No wonder the poor cat was sunning himself in the bedroom window out back later in the day. Poor kitty.
Posts: 2454 | Registered: Jan 2003
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3M makes plastic sheeting kits where you use double sided tape to stick heat-shrinkable plastic over your windows. My windows are double glazed, but I still put them up over several of my windows every year, because the window frames leak air.
Once the plastic is shrunk with a hair dryer, you can barely tell it's there, and it makes a huge difference in how warm the room feels. But we don't put it up over the windows that the dogs look through when we get home. (Shred)
You can get it at hardware stores, Kmart, etc.
Posts: 3735 | Registered: Mar 2002
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Go to Canada, KoM. You'll get plenty of double glazing and properly insulated houses there. Especially northern Alberta, for example. Oh heck, for that matter, the further north ya go, the better quality insulation, so why not head up to, say, oh, Yellowknife? Those houses are very well insulated. Ought to serve you just fine.
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Perhaps wearing a turtleneck under your shirt and wearing a hat will make you feel warmer. That's what we do. <--KoM is blue with cold
Posts: 10397 | Registered: Jun 2005
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SECRET MESSAGE FROM THE ALASKAN TO THE NORWEGIAN:
[Just be cool about it, man. You're letting out our secret. Do you want the warm-dwellers to know that we Northfolk don't actually have a supernaturally high tolerance for low temperatures? Their belief that we actually like it when it's really cold is the very basis of our mystique!]
Posts: 1814 | Registered: Jul 2004
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KoM, have you tried a sincere appeal to the almighty? Pehaps a heartfelt prayer would solve your dilemma.
Posts: 2022 | Registered: Mar 2004
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We haven't lit our heater yet because we're afraid to-- the woman above us almost died from carbon monoxide poisoning last winter from her heater-- her kids would have died if they'd been home-- and the guys the landlord got to "fix" it weren't certified, and so when the gas company came out and checked they said it was still leaking carbon monoxide, but the landlord wouldn't get anyone else out to look at it. We're worried about ours, and are going to have to have the gas company come check it before we turn it on.
As a result, we're all getting a bit cold.
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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Cold here too and I live in Louisiana. Its actually about 10 degrees colder inside than it is outside.
I live in an apartment in a converted historic home. I don't use my space heater cause I'm afraid to kill my parrot and my room doesn't have a door to hold in the heat anyway. I'm wearing socks and shoes, two pairs of pj pants, a long-sleeve shirt, a sweat-shirt, and my letter jacket.
I went and bought a ton of heavy-fabric to cover the windows and the front door which has huge gaps in the framing (my room is the front living room). I've got a heated mattress pad so I can sleep but it sure is hard to get out of bed in the morning.
Glenn, how much do those window-plastic things cost? I might pick some up while I'm home for Christmas. And do they damage the windows or anything, I'd hate to pay my landlord to screwing up the windows since we're gonna move in May.
Posts: 1733 | Registered: Apr 2005
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Depends on the size of the window. I think the ones I bought for the triple picture window were $9.
No they won't screw up the windows, they tape to the inside window molding frame. The only damage they can do is pulling the paint off when the tape is removed.
Ok, I went and found the boxes. The ones I have right now are "Frost King" not 3M. The big one is 210" x 62" The little one is 62" x 42."
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Well, with my new extension cord I can move the computer closer to the heater; and the sheets over the sindows seem to be helping; so it's not so bad now. Also, empty milk cartons filled with steaming hot water make quite efficient foot warmers.
Posts: 10645 | Registered: Jul 2004
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quote:Originally posted by Shanna: I don't use my space heater cause I'm afraid to kill my parrot...I'm wearing socks and shoes, two pairs of pj pants, a long-sleeve shirt, a sweat-shirt, and my letter jacket.
Is it OK for the parrot to be so chilly, or did you bundle up the little birdie, too?
Posts: 10397 | Registered: Jun 2005
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My parrot is a quaker which is actually one of the hardiest species. She has a rope-tunnel-bed that she cozies down in when she gets cold or just wants a nap. I went and ordered a new fleece bed for her, which she loves, so much that we had to throw her old one out cause she would never leave it to socialize.
My mother is looking for a bird-safe space heater (one without teflon-coated parts) so we're just holding out these two weeks before we head home for the holidays.
Posts: 1733 | Registered: Apr 2005
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I now enjoy ridiculing my Louisiana and Florida friends who think it's "so cold" when it's fifty.
Then again, I also set my a/c to about 55 when I'm down South and actually have control of such things. I like my bedroom to be cold enough for me to wear a sweatshirt to bed or bury myself in blankets or cuddle without waking up in the middle of the night from being too warm.
Mostly, I just require being wrapped in something while I sleep, and I also like having cold air to breathe.
I remember talking to a student who lived up north during holidays and she said that it felt colder in the South because we have more humidity. More moisture in the air makes it feel colder than a dry-cold, or something.
It works both ways. My cousins in Missouri complain about the heat when it gets to me 85 degrees. I grew up in Houston where it would be 110 degrees, ridiculously humid, smoggy, and I'd wearing long jeans and a letter jacket.
Posts: 1733 | Registered: Apr 2005
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50 is nice. I wish it were 50 here and not like 20-something.
I'm originally from Tampa, and I wear jeans year-round. I only own one pair of shorts and three skirts, two of which are really only nighttime "going out" wear. Also, for some reason, I can't stand going to class with my legs showing.
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<--KoM is blue with cold
