The Road Less Traveled

I think thoughts. I think about things that everyone else thinks about but I feel unfulfilled unless I write about them.

I'm now approaching a milestone with my newest life --a life of Florida living. It's hard to believe that it has been almost one year since I packed up my belongings and headed south from the Empire State. I've learned a lot about Florida in just this one year and I want to share some of my thoughts. Some good, some not so good.

First and probably the most joyous of reasons that I chose Florida to be my new stomping grounds was weather based. The weather here, simply stated is marvelous. Of course, I realize at this point in my life that no matter where you go, people --as a general rule, aren't happy unless they're complaining about something. So as much as I like the climate here and love the heat, I hear pretty much daily that "it's too hot". Excuse me sir, "why the hell did you move to Florida if you don't like heat?"

The people here are people. I've made a recent decision to stay away from the local news on television. In a nutshell, it's just plain scary. I thought that New York harbored some of the weirdest thugs and back-woods rednecks in the land. I was wrong... so wrong.

I won't mention motorists in the state of Florida. Uh, I guess I just did. Truthfully however, it doesn't matter what state you travel or reside in --bad drivers outweigh good drivers at least ten to one. Most of them were born in New Jersey and then apparently moved to all points around the nation. The only difference is that those whom relocated to Florida are also legally blind. End of story.

Finally, I'll discuss the choice I made last year as far as the exact area of Florida I chose to reside in. In-fact, there's a previous "On the Road" story about it. 

The Villages are located in north central Florida and are considered the optimum of retirement communities -- a sort of Utopia if you will. There are probably more golf carts here than automobiles. There are also more older folks than I've ever seen in my entire life. Don't get me wrong, I don't dislike the older generation. I'm heading in that direction as we speak. It's entirely possible that I'm having a fairly hard time accepting the fact that I'm aging, and not gracefully.

The Villages are unique.  A couple of weeks ago, I took a walk around my neighborhood. It was around 9:00 p.m. and a gorgeous evening. Within minutes of my walk, I felt like Rod Serling had come back to life and was writing another Twilight Zone episode about a ghost town. This place was eerily dead. I mean, after all... it was early evening and there was absolutely no sign of life --house after house after dark and quiet house. I wondered, has everyone retired for the evening already, or is everyone out partying in the town square. My guess is the latter of the two because one thing I have discovered that is certain --Village residents tend to live like there is no tomorrow.

The Villages boasts many great reasons to live here  --the convenience of all types of stores and restaurants, live entertainment nightly and probably most importantly, inexpensive beer. I was told prior to my move here, that the Villages are considered the adult Disney World. This is an accurate description.

I was wise to move into a rental home first, to get an overall view of the area prior to purchasing a home in Florida. I think another year of renting will complete my investigation. My second year however will be spent looking at the Villages from the outside, rather than from within --as I head up the road just a piece.

"Hello, UHaul... I need to rent a truck."

~Safe Riding~

-The Chief