I know, I complain a lot: it’s hard work being here, I can’t communicate with anyone, it took forever for us to get our stuff, I hardly ever get a break and it’s really hot. All of that is true, but that doesn’t mean that we aren’t having a good time here. Generally, things are going well, and we are having an amazing experience. Most days, I’m really confident that we made the right decision, and I spend most of my time truly enjoying Vienna and my kids. Right now, though, I’m exhausted, and that’s making it hard to think about anything other than that.
I think part of it is that I’m still recovering from having house guests last week. I think part of it is the 4-5 hours of sleep per night that comes with having kids and staying up too late. And, I’m sure part of it is stress. Whatever it is, I’m really tired. I’m trying to take it easy on myself right now, but that’s not a strong suit for me. I’ve found myself alternating between listlessness and irritability over the past 36 hours or so — which I think is mainly from the fatigue, but made worse by the heat.
I’m used to it being 72-ish inside pretty much everywhere. At home, you only have to endure the heat for the duration of time it takes to go from your front door to another front door, or if you do something outside for a while. Admittedly, cars can get pretty hot inside, but the a/c knocks that down pretty quick. I’m not accustomed to the temperature being 85+ inside, all day, everywhere. It’s hot in here by 10 am and it doesn’t cool down until after 9 in the evening. There’s just no escaping it here. Most places don’t have air conditioning, and the places that do typically set it on about 85 and leave the windows open (which, admittedly, is cooler than anyplace else, but still, not like the US). Being in my apartment, in the heat, all day, really wears me down — I’m not sure if it’s exacerbating the exhaustion I’m feeling or helping to cause it, but either way, me no likey.
Also: Dear Dan: please get an air conditioner. Seriously. That is all.