I have to say, the reality of my situation has finally settled in this week. A week ago I left my abusive task and the next week I have to travel back cabin to wrap up my healthcare expert’s appointments before my insurance is cancelled. This should not be a big task, but I do get uneasy about the 12-hour drive between here and home! Even more so, I worry about my health once I am back inside my mom’s house. She and I have a tumultuous relationship and her quirks can be harshly challenging, and one of her strangest ticks is her obsession with the central heating and cooling system. For as long as I can remember, my Dad has been genuinely strict about her control unit settings and Heating and A/C usage. She never wants to utilize the central heating or cooling system because the energy costs are so high-priced. I have numerous memories growing up of uncomfortably chilly winters and brutally sizzling summers, but when I go back to visit her as an adult, she has not changed her utility bill obsession or misguided underuse of the central heating and cooling system. It easily gives me anxiety to consider her low indoor air quality and the sleepless afternoons I will face. There’s only one thing that is filling me with hope right now; the brutally sizzling Summer headed our direction, because my Dad has a big basement, I should be able to camp out below ground for my entire visit. The space is already inherently cooler than the rest of the house. I know she will be forced to use her central AC unit at some point, which will make the basement extra cool in spite of the outdoor heat. If I did not have the option to sleep in her ice chilly basement, I would definitely shell out the money to use the Heating and A/C at a hotel.
