@shirlz,
I can see that air conditioning would make a difference - although you still have to go outside sometimes - but when I lived there 30 years ago, it wasn't standard in houses like it is now. We lived in five different places and none of them had it.
But it wasn't just the heat itself, it was the predictability of it. You know it's going to be hot again tomorrow, and the next day, and next week and so on.
I much prefer the unpredictability of Victorian weather any time.