#always keep a faucet dripping and doubly so if its in a room thats notoriously cold

[observationcoffee]

little warning/reminder for heating rice in the microwave to keep yourself warm, or hot water bottles, or anything that is much warmer then your skin. Especially electric heating blankets and heating pads: it may be tempting to put directly against skin but do not do that always have a layer between you and it like a towel or blanket. Even if the heating pad comes with a fabric cover you still need to add another layer between you and it.

Don't leave it in only one spot either, it should be in one spot no longer then 15 mins at a time and if its an electric heating pad/blanket DO NOT FALL ASLEEP AND LEAVE IT TURNED ON you can 100% burn yourself In your sleep! I have done that exact thing and have scars from doing that! Many electric pads/blankets have auto shut offs, but some still sell them with the ability for the pad/blanket to keep reheating itself indefinitely until you turn it off manually. That being said, placing the heating pad/hot water bottle/ect against your lower back where your kidneys sit is a great way to warm up your feet quickly since the major blood vessels feeding your legs runs through there and it's fairly close to the surface of your skin.

News is running a bit on how to make your house warmer in winter here, and starts with a bloke inspecting a house and it literally goes, "this house has no insulin in the walls, floor, and the ceiling insulation is full of gaps. The windows are single glazed and have poor coverings. There are nearly inch wide gaps at the base of every door including the external ones. Is very breezy inside."

Like. I know that's normal here, I live here, but sweet jesus.

News ended up advising that people put blinds in and get solar power. How tf are poor people gonna do that? Renters? Stupid advice. It's getting below zero at night rn and barely scratching 10°C in the day, which means it's the same damn temp indoors

I've improved my home by putting furniture against external walls as insulation. I've got fleece safety pinned to the inside of my curtains ($10 for a half sheet of fleece at spotlight rn!). I've taped the balcony door shut. I've committed to only heating two rooms and I've door snaked the doors to the rest of the house to save money. Do this even if you dont have a heater, your body heat is doing something. I chose bedroom and living room, some people might include kitchen to use heat from the oven but my house doesn't lay out for that to work.

Also, wear lots of clothes and blankets. It's 1pm, I have three shirts, a jumper, and three blankets on rn. Drink tea to keep hands warm. Try cleaning something with hot water instead of turning the heater on in the day, helps get your fingers warm and is slightly active. It's okay to sleep in gloves and a beenie. A hot shower to get your temp back up is good if you prep clothes and don't wet your hair.

If the world were better these houses would have been built well, but that's not where we are. There are tricks to use, use them