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Old 01-12-2021, 02:10 PM   #141
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But I will spend a lot of time watching the weather channel during the summer.
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Naah, just refresh the NOAA Severe Weather site every couple of hours, to see what's being fired off the coast of Africa and how far it's expected to get.
+1 for NOAA. A brisk breeze is a hurricane on the Weather Channel, just as a middling snowstorm is a polar vortex or some such nonsense. I used to enjoy watching TWC, but just like The Learning Channel (TLC) migrated to The Loser Channel, The Weather Channel has migrated to The Worry Channel. Sad when it gets so important to get 24x7 eyeballs that they pretty much make stuff up.
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Old 01-12-2021, 04:22 PM   #142
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You are correct. You need to speak Spanish around Miami if you want to work there. We have noticed that French (from Quebec) is spoken also around Hollywood Florida and Creole all throughout South East Florida.
I agree you will usually be just fine getting around with English. However, if you speak some Spanish, it can grease the wheels with Hispanics working on your home or yard, often they get a big kick out of you trying to communicate in their language and appreciate your effort. So if I want this or that trimmed in a special way, or some extra mulch here or there, or some of these coconuts removed, I get much further asking them in Spanish. (Talking about the coconuts, they are actually one of the hazards so far not mentioned; as pretty as these trees are, their nuts cause serious injury if they drop on you accidentally, and become outright missiles in a hurricane. That's why hurricane prep usually involves trimming all the coconuts nearby)

And yet, even Spanish gets you only so far with many "Hispanics", especially those from the Yucatan, southern Mexico, or central America, who often communicate primarily in a Maya language, and that is something impossible to learn easily.

About Creole, that is of course also harder to systematically learn for a non-native Haitian, especially since you can't even study it in a structured way in the US. However, most Haitians who speak Creole also speak proper (European) French, which they learn in school. I am pretty good in French, and this is how I communicate with them, and they usually also appreciate it. Sometimes I get a kick out of listening to Creole radio stations, mostly for the music, and it's really just like a strong French dialect that on a listening level you can figure out after a while if you know enough French. Not much worse than Quebec French, IMHO ;-)

And speaking about that dialect: another "language" that is helpful to know is Jamaican English, spoken widely in Broward County but also by many others across the state, which is IMO roughly as far from regular English as Creole is from French. Here the same applies, if you know a few of their special expressions, it goes a long way to win their heart. And it is essential if you want to understand the intricacies of the lyrics of Reggae, or in particular those of Trinidadian and Jamaican Calypso (but not the Americanized Belafonte stuff), which are often absolutely hilarious, funny and yet intelligent, and IMO worth exploring.
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Old 01-12-2021, 04:26 PM   #143
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+1 for NOAA. A brisk breeze is a hurricane on the Weather Channel, just as a middling snowstorm is a polar vortex or some such nonsense. I used to enjoy watching TWC, but just like The Learning Channel (TLC) migrated to The Loser Channel, The Weather Channel has migrated to The Worry Channel. Sad when it gets so important to get 24x7 eyeballs that they pretty much make stuff up.
So true about the Weather Channel. On Youtube you can find plenty of videos where the Weather Channel reporter is reporting live from a "deadly" hurricane and behaves like he is about to be blown away and submitting himself to grave danger to accurately report for you the valued viewer, and yet in the background, folks are walking around in bathing suits without a worry.
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Old 01-12-2021, 05:05 PM   #144
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So true about the Weather Channel. On Youtube you can find plenty of videos where the Weather Channel reporter is reporting live from a "deadly" hurricane and behaves like he is about to be blown away and submitting himself to grave danger to accurately report for you the valued viewer, and yet in the background, folks are walking around in bathing suits without a worry.
Also have Mike's weather page, which has every chart you might want and frequent updates.
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Old 01-12-2021, 05:17 PM   #145
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Also have Mike's weather page, which has every chart you might want and frequent updates.
That site indeed looks great! About wind-related weather, I also really like windy.com, which is great for watching a hurricane develop off of Africa, and then get more organized, and finally see precisely where the eye is located, and it's all live and continuously (? I guess) updated.
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Old 01-12-2021, 06:13 PM   #146
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Some more comments for the OP that so far, if I read the thread carefully enough, may have not come up:

- Only in the southern half or one third is it warm enough to sit outside basically every day even in winter. I have my "office" on a covered patio in Palm Beach County, and greatly love this aspect. Even in summer it's fine by just running the fan. For comparison, Disney theme parks can get quite nippy in winter when they close in the evening.

- The ocean temperatures in South Florida differ greatly between east coast and west coast. The east coast has the gulf stream, a very strong current coming from the Caribbean, while on the west coast, the corresponding current comes from the north and is much colder. In the wintertime, this can make the difference between an enjoyable winter day at the ocean and a more nippy one. For example, today the water temperature is 79 in Miami, but only 66 in Naples. It's a mini version of all world ocean currents, and why California beaches are cold and those at the same latitude on the US east coast are warmer.

- The FL east coast has less temperature fluctuation, is warmer in winter and and not as oppressive in summer because the predominance of breezes from the east. The FL Keys have the least temp fluctuation over the year, while the center of FL has the biggest variations.

- The west coast has a bit more sunshine while the east coast has nearly daily afternoon thunderstorms in the summer months. Although there's plenty of that everywhere, it's called the Sunshine State for a reason. The predominantly eastern breezes drop their rain on the east coast before getting to the west where they are then a bit dryer. It's a smaller version of the weather patterns in the Hawaiian islands (although we are obviously missing the mountains in the middle)

- The beach sand is generally whiter and the beaches wider on the west coast, and there is more need for beach rebuilding after hurricanes in the east.

- The east coast is politically liberal, while the west coast is more conservative (this may have been mentioned). It's partly because the east coast residents are predominantly from New York, wider New England, and Canada, while the the west coast is originally more from the Midwest.

- The southernmost counties on the east coast (Broward and Miami-Dade) are quite built up, and the ocean beaches more packed with highrise condos and hotels. From Palm Beach County all the way north to Jacksonville, the situation is generally less city-like, with the exception perhaps of Daytona. The west coast is generally less densely built out along the beaches from what I know, but it seems to be catching up especially in the last years.

YMMV.
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Old 01-18-2021, 07:20 PM   #147
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We are closing on our retirement home in a month in Florida. We chose Sun City Center, a 55+ community. Oh nominal HOA includes lawn are so we don’t have to worry if we decide to take a long vacation. We felt it had lots activities to keep us busy and would be easier to make new friends than a traditional neighborhood. We are close enough to the beach if we choose to go and can get to Tampa or St Pete easily. We can’t wait, except for the cleaning out the current house before the move.
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Old 01-18-2021, 08:15 PM   #148
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No golf that I saw. I'm out.
If you love big swaths of blacktop, this is your dream location. The parking lots are enormous!
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Old 01-19-2021, 09:49 AM   #149
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Anyone Seen the Documentary "Some Kind of Heaven" about the Villages? The first scene reminded me why we would NEVER, NEVER, NEVER want to live there.

Synchronized Golf Cart Driving ......... REALLY ........ Are they Serious?
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Old 01-19-2021, 05:27 PM   #150
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Anyone Seen the Documentary "Some Kind of Heaven" about the Villages? The first scene reminded me why we would NEVER, NEVER, NEVER want to live there.

Synchronized Golf Cart Driving ......... REALLY ........ Are they Serious?
Based upon your above comment and your other past negative comments about The Villages you should be declared the Official Villages Basher of early-retirement.org.��
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Old 01-19-2021, 07:20 PM   #151
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I saw the trailer, which looked hilarious. They found some old duffer, who lives in his van and trolls the Villages clubhouses looking for a sugar momma.

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Anyone Seen the Documentary "Some Kind of Heaven" about the Villages?
?
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Old 01-20-2021, 12:47 AM   #152
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Zero interest in The Villages. Zero interest in Florida.
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Old 01-20-2021, 02:39 AM   #153
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If you want work done on your home the salesman will speak English. At times the crews that get sent to your home speak little to no English. Learn Spanish. It will help you in situations.
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Old 01-20-2021, 05:06 AM   #154
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Florida isn't perfect, but it will always hold a place in my heart.

A trend I find sad on this ER board is people using threads to bash.

I don't find "Florida Man" funny either. It is an internet meme with discriminatory motivations behind it designed to build negative chatter that gets into the daily conversation.
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Old 01-20-2021, 07:47 AM   #155
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A trend I find sad on this ER board is people using threads to bash.
I tend to agree. If a thread is asking about tips about Florida,( or anywhere else for that matter) why would anyone post "I'd never set foot in Florida"? or something like that.
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Old 01-20-2021, 07:53 AM   #156
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We love our location in Florida, we simply do not listen to the Florida Naysayers. All we can say is that like anywhere, you get what you pay for. Location, Location, Location.

Like all location some are desirable, others are not. The difference could be 2 miles or 200 miles. You need to visit your preferred location(s) and have a good look around and talk to the people. We have our likes and dislikes. But then I personally believe we are entitled to them as we have travelled extensively in Florida looking for a suitable place (For us) to live.

Sites like this are open to anyone's "Opinions" some biased, some educated others simply perceived. The good news is Florida is VERY drivable, Hotels are plentiful and reasonably priced.
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Old 01-20-2021, 12:17 PM   #157
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We love our location in Florida, we simply do not listen to the Florida Naysayers. All we can say is that like anywhere, you get what you pay for. Location, Location, Location.

Like all location some are desirable, others are not. The difference could be 2 miles or 200 miles. You need to visit your preferred location(s) and have a good look around and talk to the people. We have our likes and dislikes. But then I personally believe we are entitled to them as we have travelled extensively in Florida looking for a suitable place (For us) to live.

Sites like this are open to anyone's "Opinions" some biased, some educated others simply perceived. The good news is Florida is VERY drivable, Hotels are plentiful and reasonably priced.
Amen. DGF and I love Florida.
Just got back an hour ago from another exhausting day of Pickleball in 70 degree weather. Sigh.....
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Old 01-20-2021, 12:28 PM   #158
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Amen. DGF and I love Florida.
Just got back an hour ago from another exhausting day of Pickleball in 70 degree weather. Sigh.....
brrr chilly day
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Old 01-20-2021, 04:49 PM   #159
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I tend to agree. If a thread is asking about tips about Florida,( or anywhere else for that matter) why would anyone post "I'd never set foot in Florida"? or something like that.
+1

I read more people bashing Florida than any other state. Why bother? We can pick any location in the world and some folks will like it and other folks will not. If you don't like a place, wherever it is, then please stay away.

The old rule still applies. Say something nice, or at least respectfully, or just say nothing.

Be kind whenever possible. It is ALWAYS possible.
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Old 01-20-2021, 06:51 PM   #160
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I grew up in New Jersey, so have a tough hide when it comes to having one's state bashed.

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+1

I read more people bashing Florida than any other state. Why bother? .
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