Tikkabik

We live in a two-story house, and we have forced hot water for heat. That means that central air conditioning would be a very expensive refit for us. A contractor a while back suggested in an informal bid that it'd cost more than $8,000 to install.

Summers in New England can be quite oppressive, however, which makes A/C more of a necessity than an option. So our solution is to have three window units in place, which, while inefficient, do the job.

Up to now I haven't been able to install them, though. They each go in a window in both rooms upstairs -- our bedroom, the boys' room, and one goes downstairs in Emmeline's room. Between the three of them, it's enough to cool down the entire house, even if it does make the electricity meter spin like a top.

Emmeline has been holding up the show. Her room is a pigsty and I couldn't walk in there, let alone carry in a heavy window air conditioner. I probably just should have stuck it in a window of another room, but it became a battle of wills. Especially since that particular unit was a gift from Emme's grandmother, as the young lass once complained, "It never gets cool in my room. Ever."

This morning, as she was sweating her way to get ready for school, Emmeline was finally convinced of the error of her ways. She cleared a path for me -- short of cleaning up her room it's a viable solution. I installed the unit and cranked them up.

By the time I got back from the mechanic's the temperature in the house had easily dropped five or ten degrees. It was the same effect as when you open the fridge door on a hot day.

Relief.