My husband and I recently went on vacation to visit my aunt and uncle upstate. I love visiting there because they live in a remote area along side of beautiful lake. I can get up in the morning, sit on the porch with a cup of coffee, and just listen to the sounds of nature. The only drawback to our visits is the fact that I always need to catch up on my sleep when I get home. Because they live in such a remote area they don’t have access to normal fuel sources like the rest of us do. In the wintertime they depend on a wood-burning furnace to keep their house warm and in the summer they simply open the windows and deal with whatever the temperature is. This can be a problem for those of us who are used to having a central HVAC system and climate control year round. I find that I can be completely surrounded by the most beautiful trees and a beautiful lake and still not be able to sleep at night because I’m so uncomfortable. My aunt and uncle have chosen a simpler way of life and I give them credit because I don’t think that I could do it. I love being able to go to sleep at night, adjust my HVAC system to whatever my preferences is, and awaken refreshed in the morning. We live in a typical suburban town and have every source of fuel available to us. With the push of my button I can have my house as warm or cool as I like at any given time. I can’t imagine having to get up in the middle of the night just to feed a wood stove in order to keep my house warm, or having to suffer through a nighttime of 80 degrees with high humidity and not have any way to change that.
