Well, not really. But, it felt like I did.

While yesterday was like 60 degrees in Kansas, today the temperature plummeted into the low thirties.

I arrived at the Cross House, opened the door, and smiled. It was warm inside, thanks to the newly reactivated radiator system.

The thermostat for the radiator boilers was set at 55, so inside was twenty degrees warmer than outside.

I cranked the thermostat up to 65, took off my coat and hat, and went to work on a variety of projects.

Around 5:00PM, I tidied up, shut the lights off, turned down the thermostat, and stepped back outside.

And was stunned. It was friggin’ cold outside, and with a light sprinkling of snow on the porch.

My shock was due to the fact that, in the four years I have owned the house, this has never happened before. There has never been a significant difference between the inside temperature and outside temperature. While the house has had heat all this time, it was a forced-air system not remotely designed to heat the huge house; it just took the edge off. During the winter if it was cold outside then it was cold inside, just less so. During the summers it was blistering inside and out. At the end of last summer I got the AC system back online but this also only took the edge off.

So, to walk outside today, and be surprised by the temperature, is something I have never before experienced at the house.

It was toasty inside. And cold outside.

And my surprise was delicious.