How long has air-conditioning existed? I found myself asking that question during the latest heat wave as cooling ourselves off has become an imperative question during this time of excessive heat. Failing to cool the planet we are now faced with cooling it (effectively but inefficiently) one room at a time. What was once a kind of luxury has become more and more a necessity. Growing up, air conditioning only existed in malls and offices and movie theatres for me and my family. Going to my cousin's house on vacation meant being treated to central air-conditioning in their sprawling Brady Brunch suburban house, which felt like being spoiled. Writing this now I suddenly remembered that particularly summer feeling of entering the house still wet from the pool and feeling that bracing chill of cold air on your damp skin as you entered to go to the bathroom or get a popsicle. America cools its environments as if it's a god-given right. The coldness that the air achieves indoors in buses and malls and other public spaces seems absolutely decadent. The other day I walked past an office building in Midtown and when the front door opened a whoosh of frigid air hit me like a frozen tidal wave. The idea that anyone should be inconvenienced in the slightest by the environment outside seems to offend some people. My neighbours (who also regularly spray their lawn with chemicals) seem to run their multiple air-con units 24/7 from late April to mid-September. In other countries there are rules about how cold you can make things and how often - but the US seems hell bent on heating the planet and pouring gasoline on the fire so to speak. But sure, I get it. On a really sticky humid day walking into an air-conditioned space can feel heavenly. In the well-cooled lobby of the shared workspace I go to it felt like I was going for a swim in a pool of cold air. I wanted to take big gulps as I walked through it.