 Three years after the air-conditioned village opened, government agencies started backing mortgages for air-conditioned homes. We were really on the cusp of such a new way of living. Shirley Sweet moved into the air-conditioned village as a kid. Now in her 70s, Sweet lives outside Houston. She relies on central AC to get through the hot, humid summers. And when she turns it on, she often thinks of a phrase her mom would say every time they entered the house on a hot Texas day. When we got home and walked in the house, she would say,