Mike and I have been together for a long time, almost thirteen years. We’ve obviously been through a lot in that time, more than most couples ever face. Many people have told me that our marriage looks built to last…but these people do not have to share a thermostat with Mike.
Mike is always cold. ALWAYS. He could wear a sweater to the desert and still have goosebumps. Mike would love it if the temperature inside our house was firm at 84° (no joke). I, on the other hand, experience temperature like an average person. I would like our thermostat to be at about 75° – not too hot, not too cold.
In the winter, our temperature troubles are few. We run the heater, use blankets, and generally are comfortable. Sure, Mike sleeps with an electric blanket, but when doesn’t Mike sleep with an electric blanket? No, seriously – he always sleeps with one! And yes, I’ve had him checked at the doctor. I bought him a twin-sized electric blanket a few years ago, mostly as a joke, and he used it so much he’s already on his second blanket.
Of course, we live in Los Angeles, so we get about 10-14 days of winter every year, which means there are around 350 days every year when one of us is too hot or too cold. It means that right now, while LA is experiencing a massive heat wave, I am sitting on the couch in shorts and a tank top and Mike is wearing flannel pants, a long-sleeved shirt, and a hoodie – and he’s under a blanket. Complaining about how cold our house is. It’s 89 degrees outside at 11pm!
Before we had kids, Mike was convinced that one day I’d give birth to little “always cold” kids, and then he’d have the upper hand with the thermostat. Unfortunately for him, both of our kids run super-hot, especially when they’re sleeping. This means that at night he’s wearing several layers and under his electric blanket, while our kids sleep blissfully in our air-conditioned house. Okay I sleep blissfully in the air-conditioned house, too.
If things are like this now, Mike is going to be REALLY uncomfortable in a few years when I start having hot flashes.
Mike in his pajamas.
Kim says:
That’s really unusual! Men are usually the ones wearing t-shirts in winter. They’re radiators. My husband is one, and my 12 yr old and 8 yr old boys too. Constantly radiating heat.
Anna says:
Yep, I call my husband my “Man Furnace.” He lets me put my cold hands and feet on him to warm up – it’s awesome! Not as great in the summer when I basically can’t touch him because he’s so hot all the time, but it’s a trade-off, I guess!
Steph says:
Same here. My husband says I’m like a furnace. Fortunately for me, our girls like it cooler like me. It seems fair because you can always add layers of clothing:) Sorry, Mike.
noelle says:
Agreed! It’s easier to warm up than cool down! My husband is always cold but if you stand next to him you can feel crazy amounts of heat radiating off his body. Keep it to yourself! lol
Anna says:
Has he had his thyroid checked? My husband has hypothyroidism and tends to be cold, too. I, on the other hand, want to be under the fan all the time, lol!
Ann says:
I LOVE this! So true, except the opposite of my husband and I. I am always cold and he gets drops of sweat on his head just thinking about a hot day. We have been married for 12 years and have somehow survived this far, he might be really excited when I start to get hot flashes.
Alyssa says:
I totally take Mike’s side on this, sorry!! I am always always cold and my whole family thinks I am crazy when I’m wearing sweatshirts & jeans when it’s 75 out! Winter is just horrible for me though (I have moderate raynaud’s), when you run cold, it is brutal. Plus living in here in MI.. not fun. My mother-in-law says to take a Cayenne pepper pill every day and that is supposed to open up your blood vessels and help. I’ve been hesitant to try it, but it this winter is anything like the last, I might just try it.
Glenda says:
Oh no! Normally men are on the warmer side. I’m like you normal 75 degrees. Hubby likes the house down to 68… Yea!
mar says:
I’m with commenter Anna above – my mother, father, and I all have underactive thyroid, and that is one of the big indicators for all of us – once we got our thyroids regulated, we didn’t feel the need to wear flannel in the 90 degree heat anymore! Easy peasy blood test, nothing to it, and if that is what it is, is regulated in most people with an easy 1 pill a day treatment with no side effects. Worth checking into, anyway!
Annalisa says:
It could be. I’m definitely finding that thyroid hormones (thyroidectomy here, still working on hormone adjustment with my endo) do affect your sense of heat. Then again, my thyroid gave me a good 35 years of service before it started mutating, and I was a fan of sweaters even before that.
Katrina says:
Okay, so I hear when you get old you get cold. Like, little old ladies are always wearing sweaters and wrapping afghans around them. So then I’m thinking…poor Mike. What’s HE going to like when he’s a little old man? If he’s already wearing flannels and hoodies in 89 degree weather, then he’s really, really going to be cold when he’s old.
My husband is the exact opposite. He’s always coming into the house saying things like, “It’s so hot in here! Don’t you want the air on?” and I’m like, “No. If I wanted the air on, then it would be on. Why? Do YOU want the air on? Don’t ASK me ‘don’t you want the air on?’ — No need to make it seem like there’s something wrong with ME just because I don’t have the air on. YOU are the one who is hot. Not me If I was hot, believe me I would have the air on.” Then he will play the martyr “well, I’m not going to turn it on if you aren’t hot.” and I’m like, “Okay, fine.” and then a minute later he’ll say, “I’m hot. Don’t you want a window open, at least?” and then it starts all over again. “Do YOU want a window open? Then open one. Don’t make it sound like there’s something wrong with ME just because I don’ have a window open….” (23 years of marriage over here)
Annalisa says:
Ha. I’m always cold, but then again, I live with three furnaces.
My husband’s ideal temperature is 50 degrees. Back when we had no kids, we’d never turn on the heat in the winter, and I’d survive it by wearing sweaters and huddling under blankets on the couch. It was easier than hearing him moan about needing “fresh air”. He’ll proclaim a sunless rainy day “beautiful weather”. He gets excited for cold fronts. He’s threatened to move to Alaska when he retires.
My kids are the kids in short sleeves in the rain on the playground in December (note: we live in the Northwest, but still…). Meanwhile I’m wearing a coat, sweater, and feeling cold just looking at them. My daughter complains that “sleeves make me itch” (then again, she does have sensory issues). If my son had his way, he’d never wear a coat or shoes for as long as he lives. He’s just now, at 2, coming around to appreciating blankets. Before that, he would basically refuse to even have any in his bed.
Each time I was pregnant, it was nine months of hot as hell. It’s like both kids jacked up my internal body temp while in residence. I did things like walk around in a t-shirt in February while sweating, and all that. My mom was horrified just hearing about it.
Chris says:
I’m with Mike! My husband on the other hand….Well he’s a furnace. And sorry. There are only so many clothes a person can put ON as well. And blankets.
Payal says:
This post was funny! My hubs and I joke that he’s the heater and I’m the “heater-needer.” He & the kids all run hot and I’m the opposite. This heat wave is something else – it’s supposed to get hotter as the week progresses!
Lissa says:
I am also the cold all the time person. Luckily while the gf runs warmer than I it’s not an extreme difference. I’m always under a blanket, even in 90+ weather. She likes a fan on when it goes above 80. I N deal with that. But yes, being a “cold” person is hard. The uncertainty of weather (I live in the Pacific NW) is annouing. If I want to wear a sundress in warmish weather, better believe I’m bringing leggings and a light cardigan in case I’m seated in the shade T a restaurant.
Stephanie says:
It’s the same in our house. I’m a normal person and like the thermostat between 73-75. Hubby-to-be is ALWAYS cold. His hands and feet feel like ice. I have to have a fan on to sleep at night and while I’m sans pjs laying under the moving air, he’s curled under our comfortable wearing a long sleeve shirt and sweat pants. And socks. That man is always wearing socks.
Kristen in CO says:
That photo caption – hahaha!!
Toni says:
This post really gave me a good laugh! My husband and I are like you guys, plus I AM going through all the hot flashes which does warm him up at night! I tell my family that they can always put more clothes on than I can take off! I agree with Kristen, that photo is fantastic!
Jeanie says:
And I thought I was always cold! I’m nothing like Mike, so maybe I’m more normal than I thought.
Jen says:
Listen. You’re going to want to bring some layers when you come to my house because I get bitchy when it gets over 72 degrees. Our thermostat is always set at 69.
Deb says:
I am exactly like Mike.. I am always cold (it is ridiculous!) I love it when it is HOT. My husband loves the cold. I refuse to have AC in our bedroom because it would be snowing in there in the summer and I refuse to wear flannels in the June, July, and August. In the winter, the thermostat is typically set for 62 (brrr)… he tries to get away with 58 (No.)
My loving husband refers to me as a lizard who needs a heat rock.