FIVE THINGS YOU NEED
TO STOP BELIEVING ABOUT FLORIDA
One thing you learn living in Florida is that a lot of
people that have never visited the state have a very distorted view of life in
the Sunshine State. No one can dispel all the myths, but I'd like to give a try
at ending some of them right now.
1) Florida is home to a million different insects.
O.K. Florida is warm year round so, yes, we do have lots of
bugs, but there are actually only two types of insect in the state. The kind
that are small enough to slip right through the holes in the screen door and
those big enough to open the door for themselves. Seriously, that's it.
Is that Katydid jacking my car? That is one tiny fly
2) Everybody's from someplace else.
It's true that we do have a lot of transplanted residents
here. I am one of them. I've only lived in Florida to about 40 years. I do,
however know several people born and raised in the state. My son is one. I do
have grown adult friends who are second third or more generation Floridians
including one whose family came here to help build "Flagler's Folly".
Look it up.
If you want to go on believing there is no such thing as a
native Floridian go ahead. Just don't argue with me when I tell you that you
are wrong because you are wrong.
3) Florida has no seasons. It's always summer.
First off, what's wrong with that? Second, we do have
seasons. Four of them just like everyone else. Our seasons do kind of overlap
and aside from Hurricane season there are no specific start and end dates.
Hurricane Season. Runs from June 1st to November 30th. Not
that those dates really mean anything. We can get a tropical storm before or
after the official season. By the way, there is no truth to the
"fact" that Florida gets the most hurricanes. Historically we've had
more storms hit than any other single state, but overall we get less than half
of all storms.
Rainy Season. Starts sometime in what some call spring. During
rainy season we get rain most every day, usually in the afternoon. These can be
heavy thunderstorms, but they are seldom long in duration. When the weather people
say there is a fifty percent chance of rain that means it is going to rain, but
only on half of us. Literally. It might rain on your left shoulder but not your
right.
Daily rains mean daily rainbows
Dry Season. Whenever it's not rainy season. Our lawns go into hibernation (unless you water them) and everything else turns brown. A lot of trees will drop their leaves, though they will often sprout new ones the next day.
Snowbird Season. This is when most people are in the state.
It starts in October or November depending on weather up north and runs through
Easter. Easter weekend usually sees more people in the state than any other
time. Most Floridians have a love/hate relationship with Snowbird Season. We
like the boost it gives our economy, but hate the crowded roads and
restaurants.
Snowbirds headed south to Miami
4) All the old people live in St Pete.
The running joke is "all the old folks live in St Pete
but their parents live in [insert name of your town here]". In reality
there are old folks scattered all around the state. The average age of
Floridians is around 45. That ain't old. The median age is even younger at
around 39. Wait. What? Florida is jam packed with old folks, so what gives?
First, remember all those Snowbirds that flock down here in
the winter? Many of them are not Florida residents, so they don't count. Also,
it really depends on where in Florida you are that determines how many old
folks you'll see. there are several planned retirement spots round the state
that attract grammas and grampas by actually saying you have to be old to live
there.
My city of Venice is not a planned community. it's just a
great place to retire. Here the median age is around 67. .
5) Everything is close to Disney World.
Orlando is close to Disney World. Orlando is in the center
of the state. You can't get an ocean view room there. Everything else is a bit
farther away. Seriously, just take a look at a map. go ahead. I'll wait.
Florida is a narrow state, but it is long. If you are
planning a trip to Florida do some research. A trip to Disney does not mean
taking a quick trip to Miami for a Cuban sandwich (it's over three hours by
car). Try Tampa instead, anyway. That's
where the Cuban originated.
You cannot see Disney World from Miami
I'll be bringing you more info on the Sunshine state in the months to come. Most of the articles will be more serious in nature with some great vacation tips, but I'll always be trying to sell you something so be careful.
