re: How Did Our Ancestors Survive Without A/C?

It's only miserable to us because we have been babied so much by AC. If all you knew was no AC hot nights then you'd get used to it

160 years ago the population north of Mason Dixon line was double what was below. And 1/3 of the people living below the Mason Dixon line, didn't have a choice.

They never had it, so they never missed it.

Houses were smaller and generally taller meaning they didn’t trap as much heat close to the occupants.

You had fewer windows meaning less sunlight getting in.

You didn’t have houses not shaded by trees as the suburban neighborhood wasn’t a thing yet.

They weren’t as fat as I am.

They were tougher than I am.

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My dad said he remembers most of the summers in South La in the 50's and 60's were 75 during the day and low 60's at night.

He also said Hurricanes didn't become dangerous until Katrina hit. Again climate change.

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And you believe him?

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Climate change only started recently pushing temps in the south to 90+ degrees. My dad said he remembers most of the summers in South La in the 50's and 60's were 75 during the day and low 60's at night.

He also said Hurricanes didn't become dangerous until Katrina hit. Again climate change.

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My grandfather didnt believe in AC. He picked cotton in Grant Parish at a kid in the 30s. He would only run the AC when family visited, but usually he would just go outside after lunch or whatever. "I hate feeling like I'm in a meat cooler," he would say.
He thought the artificial cool feeling in a house made that initial blast of heat when walking outside that much more harsh after soaking up the cold. Fans were as good as it was going to get until my grandmother started taking some meds late in life that messed with her body's thermostat. He also cussed weathermen when they gave out heat indexes because he thought it made people that much hotter going outside knowing it "felt like" a hotter temperature than it actually was. He would burn leaves in a long-sleeve shirt in August. Just old school tough.
I work next to a 640° oven in an open door plant so hanging with them as a kid makes it way easier for me to handle it. (I say as a I type in the nicely cooled break room lol)

When I lived in Wyoming, my apartment didn't have A/C. Never got hot enough. Even 90 degrees there feels nice. Down here it feels like death.

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people from several generations back were A LOT TOUGHER than people today.

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In some ways they were, but if AC went away today we’d adjust to it fairly quickly. The human body was designed to adapt to its environment.

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When I lived in Wyoming, my apartment didn't have A/C. Never got hot enough. Even 90 degrees there feels nice. Down here it feels like death.

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Water holds heat energy. That’s why stepping into the shade down here does damned near nothing, while stepping into the shade in drier areas might drop the temperature 30 degrees.