[seeriously]

Recently someone started a post here challenging posters to say something nice about Florida aside from the weather. Yes, weather is important, and while a sunny day vs. a gray snowy day is my choice, it's mostly about what the weather allows you to do. Having blue skies and 70 degree weather throughout the winter allows you to play golf year round and enjoy the beautiful beaches and boating venues. It allows you to send your kids out to play without snowsuits and boots, it allows you to entertain outdoors, and it allows you to throw open your doors and windows in the winter. It's about freedom from winter hindrances and full enjoyment of life. So now someone can post... "So have you ever heard about skin cancer?" or "Where's the time to go to the beach when you're working for $7.00/hour?" Get over it. People in every state are struggling to buy houses, people get skin cancer in the grayest of environments, and jobs are plentiful if you're skilled or educated.

[Lindsey_Mcfarren]

I moved here because I was offered a job here. When I got laid off I found another job. Then of coure I got laid off of that one. I could have sat down and whined and cried about how unfair my life was. Instead I decided that I was going to make myself more marketable in the job market and I decided to go back to school.

When I was working, it hammered me into the ground driving the roads here. I hated it, the time, the money spent on gas, the general stress. Well I found a job I could do from home, I save myself wear and tear on my car, time and money spent on gas.

As far as skin cancer goes, I am responsible with the amount of sun I get, I wear sun block. The other side of the coin is that getting some sun each day helps boost the amount of serotonin in your brain, which might explain why I am in a better mood then those of you who huddle indoors, covered from head to toe, making sure to avoid sun at all costs.

[Tarastomsgirl]

Also the sun is your source of Vitamin D, which helps depression. We NEED sunlight, Vitamin D deficiantcy (sp?) creates rickets. As far as skin cancer your right people in the Soviet get it and its cloudy and cold there constantly! Its no excuse, and beside raise your hand if you haven't heard of sunscreen?

[compelled to reply]

Skin cancer is also 100% curable. The crap in the air that you breathe in, say, Southern California, downstate New York or Tennessee is way more likely to cause you some form of a long term, incurable health problem, not to mention the effects it has on the skin aren't so great either.

[tallrick]

I can't even stay in LA for long because the air is so dirty. Every other city I have been to seems more polluted than Florida. We sit between two huge bodies of salt water on flat land with prevailing winds. Other than fire season, you can't beat Florida air. While sun makes you ugly and old, there is no fundamental proof it causes skin cancer. I knew a vegeterian who DIED from skin cancer and lived in Seattle. Florida's humidity helps keep your skin younger looking. That is, unless the person is eating junk food and smoking, living most of their lives in air conditioning.

[Magnulus]

Depending on where you live up north, you don't need snowsuits. Let's not stereotype here. I notice alot of posters on the forum are from Maine and Michigan and pine for Florida's weather but there's a big bit of country in between those states and Florida.

The heat in the summer in Florida is brutal. Like a "cool" sauna for months on end, heat index above 100 every day. It only cools off at night by about 15-20 degrees. You can do things year round... if you like sweating profusely. Exercise in the heat of Florida's summer and you risk heat stroke. Florida's summer is alot like the winter up north to others. I have to take special precautions and stay inside alot- and I do go out and ride motorcycles year round. It's just not as fun as the winter.

There are lots of other states that have little or no ice or snow and short winters. There's a huge swath of the South and Sunbelt that has decent temperate year round weather. Yesterday in Oklahoma it was in the 70's (I have family up there), and while that isn't an everyday thing it isn't the frozen north.

Skin cancer is no joke in Florida. We had relatives here (not close but related) whose son died of skin cancer in his 30's about fifteen years ago. Florida has alot more skin cancer than Texas because people spend alot more time in the sun and most think nothing of it. Also, that intense sun will also make you hot if it isn't cloudy. You see lots of poor and working-class people with intensely sun-damaged skin around here, something you don't see up north. The best times to be out in Florida are early morning, dusk, or night... precisely the times there isn't much to do in many towns. You can wear sunscreen the rest of the time but sunscreen doesn't work as well as just staying out of the sun.

[Floridabound09]

That is what they make sun block for and that is why you will see more sunblock being sold in Florida then any other state. People who get skin cancer are people who are careless or just do not know or not informed enough to make a good decision.

I have traveled Florida beaches for 20+ years, owned a condo in Myrtle Beach for many years and spent allot of time there and can only ever remember 1 single sunburn ever. On the other hand I had a co worker who had skin cancer and never has been to Florida in his life.

People think that Florida is the only state that people get skin cancer from?
This excuse that you can get skin cancer in Florida is lame.

I spend ALLOT of time in the sun and do not have any problems and I am as white as a ghost, fair skinned and could easily get burned badly. But I do not get burned and probably unless I am careless I wont ever get burned or skin cancer by the sun causing it.

Like Tara said, if you never go out into the sun, you will not get the natural vitamans you need to fight of depression and other problems that are caused by lack of sun.

Someone here posted the amount of people who live in traditional grey skies not much sun states and they are overly depressed more so then those living in the non grey skies and sunny states.

Florida is not all about the weather, but it is a very important part of anyones decision to visit or live in the one state that has all these other wonderful things to offer that Florida has.

[Tarastomsgirl]

I find it funny how people keep saying Florida is not all about the weather , however the north IS all about the weather? Because the north does not have the consistancy of long stretches of nice weather as Florida you are constantly checking the weather to see what the day is going to bring. If you dont' you might be sorry when you step out the door in a light jacket and don't realize a blizzard is coming that afternoon. Weather IS a huge part of Florida. The fact that it doesn't change much is what people want. They don't want to consume their lives constantly checking the weather channel for updates on the ice warning, snow coming in, cold front approaching. The entire point of Florida for some people IS the weather.. Its even in the state motto. "The sunshine state" that should clue you in right there. Even if it IS about the weather what does it matter. Somepeople move up north for the weather right? People move up north just for the snow so they can ski in the winter, or they can ice fish, or snow mobile.. I will attest and say YES I did move up North for the winter. I wanted cold winters and mild summers..What I found is that our summer is VERY comparable to Florida heat, if not worse because I'm land locked so no breeze what so ever, and haze which I never experienced in Fla. and yes even humidity. So why is it such a big deal if people want to move to Florida for the endless summer? Perhaps they want to move down to go to the beach just like people move up to ski.

Plus you take a chance with any weather you are in, you take a chance of skin cancer when you go out in the summer sun, you take a chance of hypothermia and wind burn when you go out in the winter. Oh and btw my husband got a bad sunburn in Feb of this year in NH becasue the sun reflects off the snow, same way it does the water and can give you a burn. So snow is not the answer to skin cancer.

[seeriously]

Originally Posted by Magnulus

Skin cancer is no joke in Florida. We had relatives here (not close but related) whose son died of skin cancer in his 30's about fifteen years ago. Florida has alot more skin cancer than Texas because people spend alot more time in the sun and most think nothing of it. Also, that intense sun will also make you hot if it isn't cloudy. You see lots of poor and working-class people with intensely sun-damaged skin around here, something you don't see up north. The best times to be out in Florida are early morning, dusk, or night... precisely the times there isn't much to do in many towns. You can wear sunscreen the rest of the time but sunscreen doesn't work as well as just staying out of the sun.

And I have a cousin who lives on gray Cape Cod who had a deadly melanoma on his face.

[seeriously]

What I wrote in my post is that Florida is about the freedoms that nice weather allows. I ended it by goading posters to write about skin cancer and sure enough..... :-)