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• Thursday, August 21, 2008 01:34 AM

  Southern Oklahoma in August with no A/C

  Last August I moved in with a friend behind on his bills. I was graduating college in December and this was the only place I could get for that short of a time. At the beginning of that August, I took a friend to San Francisco. We stayed at his temporary place (which ended up being permanent), which, for the four days we were there, housed a friend who had previously moved there, a friend we picked up in Colorado and the two of us. This place was maybe 10'x10'. That room was at least half of the temperature of my huge Oklahoma rent house, with just me and a roommate spread out inside, all windows (even the back door- hey Oklahoma has some advantages) open constantly and at least 5-6 fans. If you haven't experienced living in those conditions, well, it is unbearable. Not a good nights sleep once, and the fact we had no hot water didn't help.

  After I graduated that December I moved up to Colorado (with the friend I took to San Francisco.) We Slept in a room about the size of his in California (just us) and a third friend in a bedroom about the same size. We lived like that until just recently, with no a/c. It was fine, until one day about two months ago the heat just snapped. Each floor you climbed in the apartment house added another layer of sweat, until you got to our tiny hall on the top floor and just started pouring until you got in front of the fan. Still, this was nothing compared to the Oklahoma heat, as it was possible to sleep. Just recently moved to Denver, to an appropriately sized space (2 people, 2 bedrooms), still with no a/c. This isn't even hard, in fact you don't notice it, and again, it is nice at night. So I can see how a/c can sometimes seem unnecessary, but spend a month in july-sept in the South without one. You may survive, you may be stronger for the experience, but you are also going to be just a little on edge and insane.

  How do you think the southern culture got started in the first place?

  —TheHappyChemical Read TheHappyChemical's other letters
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