Hi Neighbour,
I have deliberately delayed writing my TGIF blog this week for what I consider a good reason. On May 1st, every year, I come to a decision about my comfort in my house. More than 10 years ago, maybe 15 years ago, when I was working, I decided that I shouldn’t leave the heat on all day in my house, when I was out. And in 2009, when I started cycling, I was already in the habit of turning the thermostat down before I left home, for whatever reason, for however long I might be gone. That habit was in place all year long. Just a small habit that meant saving money and gas. It was my way of being environmentally-friendly—a feel-good act.
On another level, years ago when an installer came to my house, I asked him what I needed to do to turn off the furnace, and he showed me the switch, and even wrote on the side of the furnace “Off↓” next to the two electrical switches for the summer fan and the furnace. It was a no-brainer. Exactly what and where I needed the information to be. But, how often do you go and look at your furnace wall? Like, never, unless it breaks down, right? So I needed to write a reminder to myself on my calendar for May 1st and another for October 1st. Well, that worked for me, and now it’s a habit, like changing my clocks twice a year. But those dates are highly publicized and always happen on a Sunday very early in the morning.
Some years, the spring weather is so great that I am tempted to turn off the furnace before May 1st. But part of the deal with myself is that I can’t turn it back on until October 1st or later. So, coming out of winter, I mostly wait until May 1st. However, this year’s weather has been so unforgivable, so retched, so C-O-L-D! that I seriously wondered whether I would actually turn the furnace off on May 1st. Then last week’s weather was looking promising, so I decided to wait until Sunday, May 1st, to see if I was ready to ‘take the plunge’.
During the pandemic I haven’t cycled as much as I used to before the pandemic. Rain and other things were limiting my chances to go for a walk or for a ride. But it seems like the last three to four months have been filled with dark, cloudy skies and cold rain. I hate cold rain, so either I haven’t gone out at all, or I’ve worn a sweater, rain pants, hiking boots and my handy dandy helmet raincover to stay warm. Many times, that’s worked to get me out the door. And once I’m out, I love to ride my bike.
Well, today was a great day to enjoy the outdoors. And I didn’t need a sweater or boots. So I turned off my furnace and went for a ride…
Fiona