I can't help but notice "cooler than inside" is also comparative, and indicates metacognition rather than simple observation.

Frankly, though, I think these prescriptive exercises from popular psych books are often less helpful than they might be; they don't seem to produce any useful permanent changes in most users' state of mind.

This one, I daresay, has served its purpose for you-- which was to make you aware of any tendency to over-analyze instead of simply experiencing the moment, without realizing what you're doing. ;-)