The BIG CHILL

January 9/10
Our indoor/outdoor thermometer was showing this one morning at 8:45. Little did I know that it was going to get much worse. This is not what I signed up for in Florida! Only a week ago we were walking home from the New Year’s Dance in balmy 75F weather. Since then a brutal cold snap has moved in and we have been huddling and cuddling ever since. We have used the electric heaters day and night and even the rarely used furnace was pressed into service. A couple of nights it got down to 27F and there has been frost. It is not unusual to have a one or two night cold snap in January and February but what is unusual is that it has been going on so long. Records from 25 to 30 years ago have been broken. Orange, blueberry and strawberry crops are in jeopardy and manatees, fish and other Florida critters are in serious distress. I have to keep this in perspective however, since cold temperatures like this in Florida mean that the rest of the country (continent?) is in an even deeper freeze!


January 13/10
It is still cold with a wicked north wind but at least there is sunshine most days. We have resorted to wearing gloves, parkas and toques and long underwear for John. The frosty mornings are coming to an end they say...should start a warming trend tomorrow. This cold snap has now broken records going back 80 years or more. We have managed to keep busy. Some “wine truckin'” but not too bad considering the cabin fever potential. And keeping this trailer warm in below freezing weather is a challenge. We have seen a few movies. I loved the effects in AVATAR and Sherlock Homes with Robert Downy Jr. was excellent as well. We have been playing cards with friends and some golf though bundled golf. We have walked on the trail and one day tried to save geckos. The poor little buggers are falling frozen off the trees and we picked some up to warm them and put them in sunny spots. Most revived but I would imagine many died in the frost in the last 2 nights. I am sure you have heard about ruined crops, plants and dying animals. I even felt sorry for the large frozen spiders on the trail! It is really devastating. John and I picked a good year to join a gym (Curves for me) so at least we can get some exercise that way.

January 15/10
We played “The Claw” near Tampa with Bud and Randi (friends from Pennsylvania) and actually wore summery clothing! It got to the high 60’s which felt downright tropical after the deep freeze. It looks like it’s over! The critters were out sunning today trying to warm up again. You can see the brown and grey colours in the landscape, mostly a result of several days of frost. Many plants and trees have gone browner than we have seen before in Florida giving an autumn look to everything. Browning is normal to some extent in Florida winters but this is extreme! Looking forward to cruising the Caribbean the last week of January.

Southern Holidays

I do get a little maudlin at Christmas, being away from our families and friends at home. We had Thanksgiving/Christmas celebrations before we left and that keeps me going. The dynamics of our families have changed and I realize that it is hard to replicate memories but I am so thankful that I have them. I am changing some traditions and making new memories. Ironically, being away also makes me more appreciative of home and family and friends there. We have been so fortunate to have met fun and like-minded people on our RV adventures.

This year we ended up having a very large group staying here for Christmas so we pooled our resources and rented a hall for a BIG Christmas dinner. ! Even the Sandhill Cranes joined us. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandhill_Crane It was nice to have some younger people around too. Ages ranged from 2 to ….well we won’t go there.

We played Bocce Ball and had a fantastic meal although as with most pot-lucks we had too much food!

The New Year’s Dance here at Sanlan was excellent. We danced all night to “Tony John” an Elvis impersonator? He had a great sound system and sang very well. At 1:00 a.m. we walked home in balmy air by the light of the blue moon and sat out for a night cap with friends. No falling asleep by midnight for us! I love the joie-de vivre of this snowbird and RV community.

It is still quite foreign to see the south in Christmas mode. Snowmen and Santas, greenery and wreaths, lights and decorated trees, nativity scenes; just like at home minus the cold and snow. Strange but beautiful in amongst the palm trees! We have enjoyed the “holidays” going to movies, visiting, playing games, eating, sharing happy hours with friends. Sometimes people comment that we are on permanent holiday and that may be true in some sense. But I consider it working at living and it keeps me busy, happy and healthy. Haven’t had a cold since I retired! I am constantly impressed with the vitality and energy of the “old retired people” down here. They must have something figured out!

Joy to the World

One day after Christmas 7 of us “girls” drove over to Lake Wales to visit Bok Tower and tour Pinewood Estates, an historical mansion there. Bok Tower is a National Historical Landmark with amazing gardens, a tower with a Carillon which has 60 bells of all sizes. Concerts are played and can be heard from the beautiful grounds. Bok Tower and Gardens were built by Edward W. Bok who was the editor of Ladies Home Journal Magazine for years. For a short version of the history of this beautiful place check this out. Or go to the Bok Tower main website from there. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bok_Tower_Gardens

John and I had visited Bok Tower last March but we didn’t tour Pinewood Estate. This Mediterranean Revival Style mansion on the property was built in 1937 by C. Austin Buck, vice president of Bethlehem Steel. He had quite the playground here! Apparently he and his family used the mansion for only 6 weeks each year. Buck was an avid golfer and bridge player and he and his family must have really enjoyed this great winter getaway! The “girls” wanted to tour this mansion decked out for Christmas which is what took me back to this attraction. It was stunning! Twenty rooms were decorated by different sponsors and designers in a theme called Joy to the World. Hallways in between were just as beautifully decorated by volunteers who work there doing tours.

Once again I was struck with the lifestyle of the rich and sometimes famous people that existed at the turn of the Century and up to the wars. We have come across this on Jekyll Island with the famous Historic District and “Cottages”, on Cumberland Island at the ruins of the Carnegie Mansion and several other places we have visited in the last 3 years. In those days the “snowbirds” were incredibly rich financially. Now their playgrounds are accessible as tourist attractions for those of us with much more modest means but rich with the opportunities that retirement brings.