Day 7 - Couldn't Live Without

[prixmium]

From this list.

I couldn’t imagine living without…

... air conditioning.

There was a time when this list would have included the internet too. While I very much don't want to live without the internet, though, I guess I have reached a point in time when I don't necessarily feel like the notion of an alternate reality where it was irrelevant would be the worst alternate reality. I care about the internet more for its utility in allowing me to meet some of the people I know than as an abstraction now, and I think that's at least slightly healthier.

Air conditioning is one of those things that I just wouldn't want to do without, though. When I get overheated I am miserable to a point of non-functioning. It makes it difficult to breathe and I often get piercing headaches. I could even manage without heat during the cold months much better than I could with no air conditioning at all. I've been in New England in the summer a couple of times, and people are crazy when they try to live with no means of cooling, not even a good window unit. I don't care how infrequently you need it. Why would you do that if you can afford a place to live??? I don't get it, man.

Oh, and also indoor plumbing. I'm sure that there are worse things to live without, but yeah. Showers are lovely. If I had to live without indoor plumbing, I would at the very least hope toilet paper existed... Not to TMI anyone but y'know. I really like survival stories, but that's one of the fridge horror things for me.

Comments

[anirrationalseason]

I've been in New England in the summer a couple of times, and people are crazy when they try to live with no means of cooling, not even a good window unit-- Oh yeah, I lived in MA for six years and so few public places had central air. I would sit in an allergist's office for asthma basically dying because they had no AC in the summer.

I feel the same way about the internet.

[st_aurafina]

I wouldn't want to choose between AC and the internet, because I'd have to choose AC and then I'd be so sad and bored in my cold, cold room.

*sigh*

[isabellerecs]

Amen, to all of that. ;)

[dorchadas]

I have had to choose between aircon and the internet (when we lived in Japan), and I always chose the internet, but honestly it was awful. There was no good option.

[mxcatmoon]

Unfortunately, A/C is a necessity here in GA. This past summer the a/c in my apartment died and I had to wait for maintenance. It was over 100 outside -- and walking inside from the outside was like walking into an oven, so it was considerably more than 100 inside. My vitamins melted, and I worried about the health of myself and my cat.