A few months ago the power went out for about 6 hours (as it usually does at least once a month) and I tried my hardest to deal with it; by 2:00pm I ended up walking to a nearby coffee shop to cool off. This got me thinking about something that a co worker on Guam had mentioned to me last year. She referred to her daughter as an AC baby. Not knowing what she meant by that she explained that even though her daughter was born and raised on Guam, she was raised in air conditioned cars/homes and couldn’t stand the heat. This made me think about all the people I’ve seen who do anything to avoid the sun. I never understood how someone can live on Guam and 1. not be tanned 2. avoid being hot. But this whole “AC Baby” concept sort of explained it all. Police officers leave their cars running with their hoods up to avoid overheating (not sure how safe that is), so that they can leave their AC on while they’re doing checkpoints and then jump back into a cool car when they’re done. People have found ways to live on this hot island without actually experiencing too much heat.
Our first apartment on Guam was a first floor unit that was shielded from the sun on one side of the building, making it much cooler. That meant that I could go most of the day without using the AC. For the first six months the AC in my bedroom didn’t work so I slept in the heat with just a small fan. It was hot and uncomfortable, but bearable, and I grew accustomed to the temperature. We now live on the third floor and there is no shade to protect us from the sun. By 9:00am the apartment is pretty warm and by 12:00pm it’s too hot. Opening the windows in different rooms to get a cross breeze going is no use because there’s not enough wind on Guam and it makes the apartment hotter! I think there are certain parts of the island that are cooler and windier than other areas. I really don’t like using the AC so much not only because of the cost, but also because I’d like to just breathe natural air and I feel like the AC makes my allergies worse. Unfortunately I’ve also become accustomed to the cool air and whenever I’ve been inside all day, the moment I step outside it’s like a shock to my body and I start saying, “Ahh why’s it so hot and humid, what’s happening, I’m sweating!” And to top it all off, if I leave chocolate out on the table, within an hour it’s melted and that’s the last straw for me.
It’s official, I am an AC Baby.
