Sometimes, being an adult means making adult compromises.
Being in a modern relationship means making big decisions together and constantly respecting the other person’s quality of life. However, living under one roof can complicate this flowery ideal. For one thing, if you have differing ideas about indoor air temperature control, you are probably going to run into some challenges living in one house together. I know that my boyfriend and I have had massive difficulties overcoming our differences in air temperature control settings. He is always extremely hot, and I am always extremely cold. In the middle of the summer, I am covered in goosebumps and in the middle of the winter he’s still sweating through his shirt. We consistently fight over the HVAC settings in the house, because neither one of us feels like we should live in discomfort. The situation only gets more complicated at night. Suddenly, our air temperature preferences completely switch. At night, I enjoy being very cold and he likes to keep with the surrounding air temperature quite warm. We struggled to sleep in the same bed for many years, until we finally found a compromise that works for both of us. He keeps a space heater plugged in on his side of the bed, and I use a small portable air conditioner to provide cool air on my side. It’s not perfect, but it allows us to both get a restful night of sleep rather than fighting over the covers and kicking each other “on accident.” We wish that it was more energy efficient to find a comfortable middle ground, but we’re glad that we’re still together.