[Staceyy]

In the winter I heat the entire house to 68 degrees but I usually hole myself up in the family room. I close the door, light the fireplace and I have a small Vornado heater I sometimes turn on. This room also contains a cozy quilted afghan.

In the summer, I usually don't turn on the whole house air-conditioner unless it is really hot and or muggy. I have been using portable fans but sometimes even this isn't enough. When I visited Denver several years ago a number of people were using "swamp coolers" which appeared to be portable air conditioners that you added cold water and even ice to. I noted this made the room much cooler than a fan. It felt like air-conditioning. The unit was on wheels which made it portable. I purchased one as a gift for one of my disabled Denver relatives before I left. If I can remember correctly, Costco had them for about $100. This was several years ago. They can also be purchased on Ebay for about $100. I plan on buying one for myself shortly.