What’s the way to warm her heart? Turn the AC up, the heat down, and simply chill out

I’m hot and I refuse to feel ashamed about it. That said I do try my best to keep it, if not a secret, then certainly on the down-low.

Just to be clear I’m not using “hot” as slang for being attractive. I’m talking I’m actually hot, as in I’m uncomfortably warm, a lot of the time. My hotness comes with pros and cons. Pros: I don’t require a heavy winter coat. Cons: I’m always the odd one out when it comes to room temperatures.

For instance, in my Pilates class I’m the one praying (in-between my cleansing breaths, of course) for the freaking fans to get turned on.

I make it a rule to never be the one to ask for the fans because the class always has at least two people who are bundled up.

There was a week last month when it was in the dreaded 90s and some fellow classmates were in sweatshirts. One woman even had on a jacket. I was gobsmacked. Who wears a jacket when the National Weather Service “feels like” temperature is 100 degrees?

Meanwhile, after some pretty serious planking, I felt like a polar bear sunbathing on an asphalt roof in Phoenix. But I wasn’t about to ask for the fans to get turned on because I knew I was the outcast and majority rules when it comes to the temperature of a room.

This was a lesson I learned as a child. My mother was always very adamant that just because I “run hot” didn’t mean I got to freeze everyone else out. It was that statement that started my lifelong quest to seek people out who also “run hot.”

I picked my roommates based solely on how they answered these two questions. Would or have you ever felt the need to wear a jacket in Texas in August? And have you ever used a space heater in a room that already had the heat on?

Now, this is going to sound extremely unromantic and would never be the plot of a Hallmark movie but one of the reasons I was attracted to my husband is because we both are always hot and/or complaining about being hot.

I can’t imagine our marriage lasting if we were constantly bickering over what the thermostat was set at.

Or worse, if one of us was always bundled up and schlepping through the house in a coat and mittens. (Fun fact: I just described my mother-in-law when she comes to visit us for the holidays. Follow up fun fact: She no longer visits us for the holidays.)

I credit our “running hot” as the reason our very old furnace has never needed to be replaced. (Ugh, I bet I just jinxed it. Note to self start saving for a new furnace.) When you keep the heat on 58 degrees in the winter it really cuts down on the wear and tear.

Yes, that’s right 58 degrees and it’s glorious. The house is comfortably chilly and you can cuddle up in some blankets and feel super cozy. I love it.

Due to growing up in what some might call a freezer, both of our children are also always hot. My daughter broke up with a guy because he complained of being cold too often for her liking. When he wore a sweatshirt to a movie theater in July it was over.

I think being hot needs to be normalized. In fact, more establishments should be like Trader Joe’s. Have you been inside one lately? It’s downright frigid and if you listen carefully you can hear people’s teeth chattering. Meanwhile, I’ve never been happier.

Reach Sherry Kuehl at snarkyinthesuburbs@gmail.com, on Facebook at Snarky in the Suburbs @snarkynsuburbs, on Instagram @snarky.in.the.suburbs, and on TikTok @snarkyinthesuburbs and snarkyinthesuburbs.com.