I am not a very “cold” person. Pre-New York blood as old as the native Indians runs in my New York veins, so I have a pedigree of cold tolerance.
BUT WOW it was freezing last night!
At 8am my thermometer read -5 degrees Fahrenheit this morning. NEGATIVE five. And that was when the sun had risen! BRRRRR. No wonder my sleep had been so fitful last night! Yow! How low did it get overnight?? I can’t seem to find the temperature recorded at my news sites. Oh well. It was cold!
I have to wonder how people used to cope with such frigid cold before central heating. Fireplaces and coal stoves don’t really give a lot of warmth. Were the people just more adapted to cold weather? Did they live and sleep with their fur coats on all the time? This house was built in 1855, before central heating. It’s a great, big drafty house with huge drafty windows. I know there were at least 2 coal fireplaces here (we find tons of coal chunks in the yard every spring). But that’s it?! What did people do? Sub-zero temperatures are not terribly unusual for Upstate New York in the winter. And even the semi-normal 10 degrees above zero is still a little chilly… so what did they do in the olden days to keep from freezing their tails off??
I know what I’m going to do– get a blanket and move closer to my computer!
1. January 2009 at 12:34 pm
Recently, we had a week of sub-zero windchill temps….like waaaay sub -22. Not something I had ever experienced before. I had ice forming on the inside of some of our double windows. On one occasion, as I attempting to let our dog out the back door, my damp thumb stuck to the screen door handle. Sort of reminded me of the stuck tongue segment from The Christmas Story.
Happy New Year!
1. January 2009 at 1:52 pm
Do you have any down comforters? They are amazingly warm – that’s the only way I can figure they survived in the winter…I remember in one of the Little House on the Prairie books Laura saying how they would wake up with snow on their covers (that had come through the cracks in the walls and roof).
1. January 2009 at 3:34 pm
I’m not sure I want to know how they stayed warm. I just thank God that we have the knowledge to keep our homes warm now. It had to have been hard years back but I guess they got used to it.
1. January 2009 at 4:26 pm
Happy New year!! I almost forgot to let you know that you have an award waiting for you right here: http://newyorkchica.com/2008/12/i-just-love-getting-awards/
Enjoy & Have a great Thursday!
2. January 2009 at 11:26 am
I hope it warms up some!
Thanks for all the support of my blog this past year. It is much appreciated! Looking forward to a great 2009! Best wishes for a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!
2. January 2009 at 7:24 pm
What a great post!!! I’m originally from NYC, then we moved to Mt. Vernon, then we moved to a 100 year old Victorian in Rhode Island. What I learned about the houses in our area, is that they were built as summer homes @ the turn of the century for the people who lived directly in Providence who did not ‘summer’ in Newport…hence, NO INSULATION…yes, a couple of fire places and there was a coal stove in the house that was no longer in service…but they must have had a way to stay warm…hence the coal and wood…but, it HAS been bitterly cold…a big down comforter sounds good to me…we’re now in a 1920 Dutch Colonial, so no huge drafty windows…very, very cozy!!!
A happy and healthy New Year to you and your family!!! STAY WARM!!!
Amy
3. January 2009 at 9:42 am
That is cold! I am not very good with cold at all. Here in my part of the UK (Lincolnshire), temperatures are mostly around 0 degrees Celsius (sorry – can’t work in Fahrenheit) and that feels cold enough for me. It is likely to get a little colder over January and February though before spring arrives. Our house is old and insulation is poor so we can shiver at night sometimes.
3. January 2009 at 7:50 pm
I hope you’ve seen somewhat warmer temps over the last couple of days, we sure have! It’s 80+ here today in norht Texas! Warm enough that my husband even went out and cleaned out the garage, waaahooo!
3. January 2009 at 10:33 pm
I wonder exactly that same thing! How could beans and kitties stand it? My mom would’ve been about 2 inches from a fireplace, I know.
Happy New Year to you!
4. January 2009 at 5:19 am
Omg. That is cold. I am a Sunny California girl, I recently moved to Las Vegas and Oh My! It snowed and temps are around 30! I am freezing. Reading your post only made me appreciate and miss California Sun
lol
4. January 2009 at 5:18 pm
This is exactly why I have an electric blanket. I have a very low tolerance for cold because I have fibromyalgia, and if the lights are out and I have to be in bed, I put on socks, sweats and snuggle with my kitty boy. He likes to be under the covers too. I live in WA state and we are having an unusually cold winter this year.