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I had a fire call last night (nothing serious just a false alarm) but the driveway was a complete sheet of ice and I just about fell backwards while wearing my air pack. Luckily I was able to catch myself but if I had fallen there is no doubt I would have got banged up pretty bad.
The good news is I just got an e-mail from the Florida Highway Patrol saying my applications is being processed and I will be hearing soon on when my written test and physical test will be. It may not pay as well as Maine does and granted, being a trooper in Florida is a lot more dangerous than Maine but I figure if it's your time to go it doesn't matter where you are or what you are doing you are going to go. The base pay is somewhere around $33,900 a year to start which is a lot more than I am making at my $10 an hour job now. Granted I am not getting shot at where I am working now but even being an unarmed security officer has some risks with it.
Plus it will end up being more because there is no state income tax in Florida.
So if everything goes OK and I pass the physical tests and everything I will be entering the academy in July. Not the most ideal time to be going to the academy but I am going to have to work in the hot summer so I might as well start training in it.
It seems we have more and more in common. I know what you mean about the black ice, etc.....freezing temps at a fire scene are a bad combo for everyone.
My wife and I were just pulling into a parking lot the other day when a truck started skidding on ice and almost slammed into me.......there was no where to go and nothing to do but brace myself for a hit and pray....the guy just missed us.
I don't care what I read here....I can't wait to move to Florida full time...1259 days to go......the complainers down there just do not understand, but that is ok......everyone has to do what is best for them. I know what is best for me....
You need to stop relying on internet sites to provide you information that effects your family & yourself.
No one on these sites is going to pay your bills, find you a job, take care of your family, raise your kids, etc etc etc.
What is best for you & your family?? No one on here can TELL you...that is for you to decide.
And if you rely on these sites to make a decision to move to a state that is suffering like most other states...oh well, best of luck if tyou hate it & are stuck & best of luck if you love it.
Take your time. Do research AWAY from the computer. Do a budget. Talk to your wife & kids. Why should what random people say effect your decision one way or the other? I'd be far more concerned about my family's thoughts & feelings than some person on this site.
first of all i'm not relying on this site to see if i should move or not.i did say i was getting cold feet from some of the negatives but i would never make a decision based on what i hear on this forum.do i come in here to ask certain questions?of course i do,that's what this site is for to gather information and get honest answers. unfortunately half the people in this forum are here to screw around and give out false info.i would never make a decision based on what i hear here.i would take precautions and appreciate some of the advise but that's it.
It seems we have more and more in common. I know what you mean about the black ice, etc.....freezing temps at a fire scene are a bad combo for everyone.
My wife and I were just pulling into a parking lot the other day when a truck started skidding on ice and almost slammed into me.......there was no where to go and nothing to do but brace myself for a hit and pray....the guy just missed us.
I don't care what I read here....I can't wait to move to Florida full time...1259 days to go......the complainers down there just do not understand, but that is ok......everyone has to do what is best for them. I know what is best for me....
Frank D.
Thanks! The other day on the way to work we had a light dusting of snow. It wasn't even supposed to snow! Anyway, I have driven in the storms where we had 13 inches and had no problem. But coming off the interstate I hit some black ice and almost ended up in the median strip. I was going a little too fast for the conditions but when I was on the interstate the roads were salted and were OK but coming off the ramp was bad! It's not the big storms that will get you...it's the light dustings. Half the time the highway dept. won't come out until they get a bunch of accidents, especially now since most towns and cities have already used their entire budget for snow removal.
Things I like about Florida......not in order of importance....
1) cool reflectors on all the roads.....feels like I'm driving on an airport runway....
2) Grass that feels like you are walking on an air mattress.
3) Never having to bring all your aerosols, liquids down in the basement so they won't freeze in your garage
4) No basement to even do that in....
5) No need to own a snowblower, or rototiller, or ice scrapers, or snow shovels, or cans of walkway salt.
6) I can mow all year!
7) Sprinklers are already in your grass!
8) Cool birds
9) You can take long walks EVERYDAY.
10) You can wash your car anytime you want without worrying about your locks freezing.
11) No snow tires
12) No huge gas bills
13) you can swim everyday. I swam on Christmas!
14) you can see the parking lot lines
15) Shopping carts don't get stuck in snow/ice ruts
16) If you wait in line on Black Friday shopping at 5am, you don't get cold.
17) Space shuttle launches
18) Awesome flowers, all year round
19) Mickey lives close by.
20) Manatees
21) about a thousand cool license plates
22) No car inspections, no failures for a check engine light that just came on
23) You can paint all year.
24) no 48" frost lines
25) Golf cart garages
26) Motorcycles are a year round, non-seasonal thing
27) Flamingos
28) Citrus trees....picking your own oranges!
29) Geckos...or whatever the proper name is.
30) friendly neighbors
31) no need for humidifiers
32) no dry, rough skin
33) bottle brush bushes
34) cheap cruises!
35) not needing airfare to cruise
36) not having to justify owning a pool or hot tub
37) Old Time Pottery stores
38) a beach is never too far away.
39) year round grilling
40) outside hung instant water heaters
Well, that's a start.....time for bed....
Frank D.
some poor unsuspecting yank is going to read this very optimistic list and move to florida --
let me just offer a different perspective on a few things here:
2) the grass variety in florida is centipede or st. augustine and it is NOT soft. it is broad, and scratchy. Northerns would probably mistake florida grass for crabgrass. Nor can you walk in the grass with barefeet, as you will INSTANTLY be ATTACKED by FIREANTS. it is not green unless you water it constantly or you live in the middle of a golf course.
5) no need for any of the snow gear. Replace that with a lifetime membership to a pest control service or you will have bugs in your house...guaranteed. snow can be annoying but it doesnt carry disease. it doesnt crawl all over the plates in your kitchen cabinets. snow doesnt smear its own dung on a wall to attract more snow...its roaches that do that! i had a friend who worked for a local pest control service in florida. he said that it is impossible to keep the bugs out of the walls in a florida home. the only reasonable goal is to keep the bugs from coming out of the wall and into your living space. Doesnt that just give you a warm fuzzy??
9) you can take long walks everyday as long as you are willing to shower right after. you can also take long walks as long as BO doesnt bother you or any of your friends. i have noticed that people in florida seem to just ignore their own BO. i guess when you sweat all the time, it simply becomes a fact of life.
10) wash your car any time you want! yes, that is true also. you have to wash it about once a day for about 4 months or else it will get love bug damage. (love bugs, as adorable as they sound, can totally ruin your paint job)
22) no car inspections...this seems good at first glance...IF every person had common sense and would not attempt to drive a go-kart or a moped down I-4 during rush hour. or, the vehicle could look like a perfectly good car on the outside...and inside is the heart of a lawn mower. yes, it does seem that no inspections is a good thing, until you are confronted with someone endangering your life because the top speed of their vehicle is 35 mph.
23) you can paint all year...that is correct! many would say you have to because the sun bleaches everything out. the color orange will look peach in 12 months. pick colors for exteriors with this in mind.
30) friendly neighbors...interesting. i lived in some parts of florida where people commonly posted signs on their lawn that said "no trespassing"
many times they had an additional sign that said "property insured by smith and wesson." these same friendly people would rarely venture out of their trailer.
31) no need for humidifiers...yes make it a DEhumidifer that is a lot more expensive than a humidifer.
just thought another perspective should be posted so that people dont pack their bags and move to florida looking for the next utopia.
32) and 13) these two contradict each other. swimming everyday will result in rough dry skin especially if you are swimming in a chlorinated pool. (osmotic systems somewhat better). you can also get green hair if you are blonde or gray. laying in the sun after swimming result in rough dry skin that is wrinkled and prone to cancer.
You a/c unit is only give a lifetime of 6 or 7 years. $8,000? YIKES.
You paid too much. I purchased a unit for one of my rentals 3/2 1500 sq ft. to heat and has a/c for 4500.00 installed. This last one was installed in 1990. So it lasted 18 years.
First, I'm not trying to sway anyone "to Florida". The OP just wanted reasons to like Florida. It's been a fun, light hearted thread, and should continue that way.
As everyone knows, there IS a bit of negativity on this forum, and this thread has been a welcome ray of sunshine.
I agree that St Augustine grass is not soft, and better walked on with shoes. When I posted that it was soft, I meant that it is dense and thick, and feels cushy on the feet when walking on it with sneakers......like you don't get down to the hard dirt part. Sorry to confuse......
As to the rest of the rebuttals to my "list", most are not worth rebutting. I've only been to Florida 6 times this last year, but I do not recall any of the people I was enjoying the Florida life with having B.O.....I do admit needing a shower after trimming trees and doing heavy yardwork, but the habit of working, showering, then socializing, in that order, solved any of the problems you described.
As to painting, I love to paint, but my siding is vinyl, and it has not faded noticeably.....my garage door DID fade, but it was painted a dark color, a bad choice from the start, and now that it is white, it looks great, and should for a long time.
I'm sure that if I looked for them, I could find a mean, unfriendly Floridian...but I have not found one in my neighborhood yet. My neighbors are the best, and I do not just mean the ones on either side, I mean all the people I've met in our 100 house sub-section.....I've met the majority of them, and I've been treated to many acts of kindness. They are great.
As to rough skin and swimming, the use of a salt water chlorinator solves that problem. Nothing dries the skin like below zero wind chills....ask ANY northerner.
In closing, I do not believe Florida is utopia.....it has it's problems like any other place.
The Apostle Paul wrote, "I've learned to be content in whatever state I am in". I'm trying to be content in the state of NY....I think at least for me, it will be easier to be content in the state of Florida......
As to the A/C thing......my A/C unit is a 2.5 ton 10 seer unit installed in 1992. I just had it checked by a serviceperson who told me it was still working fine. I'm sure it is near it's "end of life", so I will be replacing it soon......minimum now is 13 seer. It is a Trane.
I can replace it with a new 14 seer unit, change it from R-22 to R-410a, change the lineset, condenser, air handler, etc,etc for under $5000. If I stay with R-22, it would be less. For every seer you go up, you save roughly 10% in electrical costs.....so it would be a good idea to upgrade soon.
A neighbor just got a whole new system installed for $3500, with warranty, etc. Buying a quality unit, and doing regular maintenance should insure a life of at least 12-15 years.......
Now, back to "good things about Florida"......
Respectfully, Frank D.
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i just had to address this...
