I finally decided yesterday to turn the air conditioner on at home when the inside temperature surpassed 80° F (26.7° C).  With uncomfortably high humidity to augment the heat, I realized sweating inside my own abode was not a good idea, although I’d not been home all day and didn’t realize until late in the evening just how hot it was.  I know The Kids were not bothered by it as they have a greater degree of tolerance for temperature variations.  Likewise, I also knew there was no way I could sleep with it being that hot.

I flipped the switch on the thermostat and set about getting ready for bed: spending a bit of “good night time” with each of The Kids, brushing and flossing, getting undressed, giving The Kids fresh food and water, and so on.  Thirty minutes later, once I’d completed my activities and was ready to hit the sack, I was still aware of how uncomfortable it was, so I went back to the thermostat to check on our progress.  With the air conditioner running the entire time, imagine my dismay when I saw it was actually warmer by one degree than it had been prior.  I immediately walked to one of the vents and checked the outflow.  Yes, there was plenty of air blowing, but it was room temperature at best.  I mentally noted that I should call and have it repaired today, then I turned it off and went to bed.

What misery.  I tossed and turned all night long because it was unbearably hot and I was forced to wallow in my own sweat, not to mention how much worse the situation was made when any of The Kids came into contact with me.  Their normal temperatures are hotter than ours, so physical contact simply added to my own distress and made me feel hotter than just the wretched lack of air conditioning caused.

Needless to say, as I told Rick and Jenny earlier as we were preparing to go to lunch, I am essentially stupid today because I didn’t get much sleep (perhaps a total of an hour or two when added up, but even that was split into very small increments as I was awake more often than not).  In expected fashion, Rick was sure to remind me that at least today I had an excuse for being stupid.

Finally, by 2:00 PM this afternoon (that’s 2:00 PM CDT given the time change last night, something I didn’t address until this morning and which certainly added to my confusion), they were able to charge the compressor and get cold air pumping through the vents.  Thankfully it was that simple, and I’m now enjoying a much more comfortable home.  I imagine tonight I’ll sleep well and for an extended period of time.