I’ve got to tell you, for the past many years I insisted that I would never live through a real winter again. By that, I mean that I was dead set against experiencing is entirely cold, windy, snowy weather that had marked my entire upbringing. When I was growing up I remember being frigid all the time in the winter season. It was so brutally cold outside that you had to wear at least five layers of clothing if you didn’t want to get frostbite. My buddy and I constantly had to operate our forced air furnace in order to keep the family comfortable and the apartment pipes from bursting. I will call my parents complaining about the high biweekly bills created by our inefficient forced air furnace more afternoons than not. We’re not allowed to touch the central heating, cooling, and ventilation system temperature control nor were my wonderful friend and I allowed to complain about the low indoor air temperatures when our heating, cooling, and air quality control devices could not keep up with the Arctic air outside. Since all of those experiences, I have been committed to residing in a warm and balmy environment. I have never wanted to rely on a forced air furnace or go through the pain and suffering of a normal winter season. However, life does not entirely care what you want. I found myself moving back to my seasoned winter climate last year and trying to find new ways to survive the undesirable air temperature. One of the most powerful things that I have found in a traditional fireplace, of all things. It turns out, your forced air furnace can only do so much… But a wood burning fireplace entirely heats up your house. Since I have been relying on a fireplace instead of a furnace, my thoughts about winter have harshly improved.