Heat

Winter has come early and hard to New York City. Landlords are required to provide heat as of October 15, so early October has habitually meant steady business for heating and fueling companies. I stopped to chat with a couple of guys draining the boiler in my building this morning, and they've been working round the clock all week, unable to stay ahead of the demand. Good news for them. Not so pleasant for those in shivery flats around the city.

Two winters ago, as part of my Greening experiment, I challenged myself to see how temperate I could keep my townhouse in the winter. (Result: 55 at night/65 by day felt comfortable by Christmas, when I was wearing sweaters every day anyway, though my Dad and Nana refused to visit if I didn't bump it up to 70 for them.) My landlord explained that city dwelling is a little different; consistent temperatures in independent units help to regulate a building as a whole -- one of those "whole is greater than the sum of parts" situations. His suggestion was 58-60 at night/when not at home, and 68-70 when home and active.

Last night was damn cold. I'm thinking that tonight will be downright balmy by comparison of what I was expecting!