I have a friend who lives in Queensland and we are always talking about how hot or cold it is. Of course, bear in mind that her idea of "cold" and mine are many degrees apart. LOL But, even given our different preferences for temperatures, I'm always astonished that the things we take for granted here (AC and heat) are not part of the average house in Aus. If it gets cold there, why aren't the houses built to protect their inhabitants from that as well as from the heat? I don't think it gets as cold where she lives as it probably does where the cold winds are as close by, but still.... If it gets cold every winter, and extremely hot every summer, why aren't the clothes needed for that range of temps available? And why aren't houses built to handle both ends of the temp. spectrum? It's confusing to someone from here. My parents lived in Florida for many years and, while their house had all the things you'd expect from one in a warm area (ceiling fans, lots of screened outdoor spaces, AC, thick walls, etc) it also had central heating that could be turned on if and when the occasional cold snap extended to southern FL. (In my mother's case, that was defined as "it's below 70, turn on the heat!!!!" LOL)