My office is extremely cold. Certain parts of the building are fine, such as my boss’ office. My office, however, is surrounded by windows (normally a good thing) which lose a lot of the heat. I constantly have a space heater going under my desk and an extra sweater that I leave at work to blanket myself with.

My home, on the other hand, is extremely warm. My housemates, unfortunately, have control of the thermostat. Being upstairs, it is always warmer. We all know heat rises, right? It’s not uncommon for me to have to open a window during winter to cool off. I also use fans year round.

Being in both atmospheres in the same day for 5 days of the week certainly makes it a challenge. When I’m getting ready at home in the mornings, I’m comfortable in a tank top and light pants. However, I’m obviously not leaving the house in a tank top during winter! I get everything else ready – purse/bag packed, coffee ready, etc. And then I finally add the rest of my clothes – and scarf and coat just before heading out. I even delay socks because my feet just like being barefoot.

Of course, once I go outside, it’s freezing. When I arrive at work it’s chilly. I never really warm up. At home I can barely stand anything over my first layer. At work I’m always wanting more layers.

I usually go home for lunch. I’m blasted by the heat, quickly removing my hat, gloves, mittens (yes, both), scarf, coat, and frequently a sweater. An hour later, it’s back to the tundra.

With my portable thermometer I have monitored temps at both places. Home varies 70 – 78, usually an average of 75. Work at the start of the day is below 60 and “warms up” to 65 at the most. It’s torturous. So, dealing with a ten degree difference is, quite honestly, just a pain.