By Edward A. Forbes
The Bulletin
It’s only 40 degrees outside, but my thermostat is set to 72.
During the summer months, I set the thermostat at 74 or 75 during the day and at 72 at night. Now, the chilly weather has me turning the heat up to 73 occasionally (make that most of the time).
I remember visiting my grandfather, and I swear the thermostat at his house was set on 80 degrees during the frosty winter months.
My mother in her later years would keep her apartment warm enough to bake bread. Is this a part of the aging process?
My little pharmacy offered free delivery service, and most of the patients that took advantage of this were the elderly.
The delivery drivers (occasionally me) got to experience a wide variety of dwelling temperatures. Some of the drivers (like my son Wes), didn’t wear coats until the temperature was in the low 30s.
They had no problem with the dramatic temperature changes. On the other hand, if you’re wearing a coat, hat and gloves and venture into an 80-degree environment, you immediately want to shed some of the layers.
In a small town, the delivery of medicine from a local pharmacy wasn’t like that of Fed-Ex or the post office. The drivers were invited into their homes, where conversation accompanied the settlement of the tab, especially if they lived alone. Enveloped in the fragrance of cookies baking or a roast cooking - or stew in the cold months - the drivers didn’t rush their transaction.
If I delivered medications, it was either after business hours, or on my day off, so I had the luxury of having time to visit and catch up with the things going on in their lives. The frequent patient knew me and my drivers.
One scorching summer my son delivered to Ms. Lilly; she offered him some cold water. She inquired, “What kind of pop do you like?”
“I’m a Dr. Pepper man,” he replied. After that brief conversation, when he delivered to Ms. Lilly during summer months, she presented him with a cold Dr. Pepper wrapped in aluminum foil. He was concerned about accepting this gift from her.
“Son, this is a small town, and it gives her pleasure to give you this gift in exchange for the brief conversations, so just accept graciously and let her visit with you for a bit.” I think it was good for both.
Back to the original theme of this article - I find as I get older that both summer and winter thermostat settings are creeping higher.
I wonder, is there an algorithm out there that graph advancing age with advancing thermostat settings? Is that 75 of the summer going to equate to 75 in the winter?
I’ll know about the analytics when my winter settings are 80.
Stay warm out there - until next time.
(Email Edward Forbes at eforbes1946@gmail.com or send comments to The Bulletin, P.O. Box 2426, Angleton, TX. 77516.)