Carpetblogger has done it again, taken the words right out of my mouth— this time about the common folk belief in Turkey that air conditioning, or indeed any free-flowing air, will make you sick. I’ve noticed this when I ride the bus; even in 100-degree weather, if I try to open a window people scream at me to close it. “Do you want us all to get sick?” they ask with accusing eyes as sweat pours down their faces. Well, I don’t want us all to die of heat exhaustion, no.
Even my housemates, who are university-educated adults, believe that every illness they contract can be traced to a few minutes they spent in an air-conditioned room three weeks ago on Thursday. And every time I cough or sneeze, they say, “Melissa, it’s because you sit in front of that fan all day.” The worst part is, doctors here don’t seem to be any more well-informed— the last time one of my housemates was sick, the first thing the doctor asked him was “have you been in front of any air conditioners or fans?” Of course, said housemate brought this back to me as proof that I was playing with fire by having the fan on constantly. Never mind the fact that I’ve only had one illness this year, and it was after international travel (I often pick up bugs when visiting new countries). And let’s not forget the 25 years I lived in Texas, the whole of which is air-conditioned 24 hours a day, and we Texans somehow managed to survive that. I understand there are still a few Texans left to tell the tale, even.
Anyway, Carpetblogger’s post is as informative as it is snarky. Go read it. Link