[DailyJournalist]

I dont know why anybody is argueing with Going-2-Florida, I think it is great that they want to move down here so badly. Why are you trying to stop him, that just means there will be extra jobs for anyone moving back to his hometown. Going-2-Florida stop talking and start packing is my advice.

[BornInFL]

"She said why not live and be on vacation year around like her, her hubby and kids are?"

WTH? What do you mean be on vacation all yr round? I live here, and I sure as hell dont vacation all yr round, and it sure as hell doesnt feel like it! I go to work 5 days a week and battle traffic, congestion, and rude ppl on the roads every single day.

[BornInFL]

Wesley Chapel is a nice area to relocate to.

[DailyJournalist]

Originally Posted by BornInFL

"She said why not live and be on vacation year around like her, her hubby and kids are?"

WTH? What do you mean be on vacation all yr round? I live here, and I sure as hell dont vacation all yr round, and it sure as hell doesnt feel like it! I go to work 5 days a week and battle traffic, congestion, and rude ppl on the roads every single day.

They must mean it is like living on vacation in Florida when you are making $10 an hour,lol. Florida is great, what they don't pay you in wages they make up in sunshine dollars.

[RMD3819]

Originally Posted by Going-2-Florida

Like the relative above said, why not have your cake and eat it to and work, play and raise your family and be on vacation all at the same time.

G2F, I think you are going to be fine here in Florida. You seem to have a sense of balance on what to expect here. We get many dreamers on this board who want to come here based on the weather and ignore everything else. You are clearly not one of them.

That said, the only thing that bugs me is the expectation of being on vacation all year round. This depends on your definition of vacation but if you can structure your life to feel like you are on a perpetual vacation then go for it. People (the dreamers) move here and don't realize they must work, pay bills, drive the kids around, get the car fixed, etc. Things they would not normally do when on vacation-and they are not going to the beach everyday like they thought they would. Of course, you are doing all these things in warmer weather.

I just wanted to caution you about that.

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by RMD3819

G2F, I think you are going to be fine here in Florida. You seem to have a sense of balance on what to expect here. We get many dreamers on this board who want to come here based on the weather and ignore everything else. You are clearly not one of them.

That said, the only thing that bugs me is the expectation of being on vacation all year round. This depends on your definition of vacation but if you can structure your life to feel like you are on a perpetual vacation then go for it. People (the dreamers) move here and don't realize they must work, pay bills, drive the kids around, get the car fixed, etc. Things they would not normally do when on vacation-and they are not going to the beach everyday like they thought they would. Of course, you are doing all these things in warmer weather.

I just wanted to caution you about that.

I agree with this. I also want to say (if you haven't already read many of my posts here on this forum) that I am a Florida native, and my hubby and I LOVE it here - and yes, although we work, it feels like a vacation year round. My hubby is from the midwest and also grew up in Europe, and traveled all over - there is NO WHERE ELSE he would rather live. There is not a DAY that goes by that we don't say how lucky we are to live here, and I tell him all the time I can't understand some of the truly negative postings here. He just says that some people are just unhappy. Just check out the threads of people who left here and came back! There is great diversity in this state from geography, town size and cultures, we have great small towns and not-so-great towns. Four cities of some size, all very different from one another, so there is something for everyone as long as one likes weather on the warm side much of the year.

I know some people came here ill-prepared, or came and things went bad for them or whatever, or just don't like warm weather - but anyone who comes here with their reseach done and has JOBS lined up (like you do) has a great chance of being as happy as we are as well as many others who have done their research when they came here.

One last thing - some of those who are unhappy here take great delight in posting "stats" or sensational crime headlines. I could go to any state and find the same type headlines to make it look bad - it's called "hype." I agree with you, the OP, that while Florida is not perfect and it does have some problems, it is no worse than anywhere else, and hubby and I find it better than most places - at least for us. Just remember there are fewer of us "happy" folks posting on this forum - every time I think about leaving this site for good, I get yet another private message from someone thanking me profusely for my help, and then I feel compelled to stay. I actually get quite a few messages from those who don't want to post here, and are thankful for some balanced info about living here.

Good luck to you, goingtoFL and welcome to Florida!

[seeriously]

Read these posts. The biggest problem you will encounter in Florida is the whiners.

[Lakeland Yankee]

Originally Posted by RMD3819

People (the dreamers) move here and don't realize they must work, pay bills, drive the kids around, get the car fixed, etc.

Originally Posted by gypsychic

I know some people came here ill-prepared, or came and things went bad for them or whatever, or just don't like warm weather - but anyone who comes here with their reseach done and has JOBS lined up (like you do) has a great chance of being as happy as we are as well as many others who have done their research when they came here.

Most of us negative (truthful) posters didn't just move here like some kind of hobo , we had things planned , researched , and lined up well in advance long before we came here. It's not our fault that jobs get cut and the economy tanked.

Hopefully that doesn't happen to certain posters who love to relish in the misfortune of others. I would be very cautious of judging others in this unstable economy, maybe YOUR jobs will be cut next.

Originally Posted by gypsychic

One last thing - some of those who are unhappy here take great delight in posting "stats" or sensational crime headlines. I could go to any state and find the same type headlines to make it look bad - it's called "hype."

People bash my home area of Lancaster County, PA all the time. That's their right to do so even though I don't agree with them. The difference is that they can not provide links or stats backing up their facts and opinions.

Once again this is a Florida forum so of course people are going to post Florida crimes and stats. 2 years ago (had I joined the site instead of just reading the posts) I would have been posting different stats because the economy then was in much better shape.....

No one tries to make Florida look bad, the weird stories and crimes that occur here speak for themselves.

I'm stuck here for at least the next couple of months but I will always post in the Florida forum warning others about this "paradise". It seems some of the positive posters disappear from the forum after moving here ..........[that's right they are out enjoying the state, lol]............or to put it bluntly.... they are too ashamed to admit they were wrong.

[Gypsy10472]

Originally Posted by compelled to reply

...17. Did you know that if you move to Florida, a burglar will break into your house at least once a month?
18. Are you aware that every inch of Florida is exactly the same?
19. Even if you have friends and family in Florida, do they count since they live in Florida? (They might be rude people).
20. Did you know that they ship more toilets to Florida than other other state just so they can provide toilet-cleaning jobs to intentionally make for a low-wage economy?

Many more to come if I have the time (or have the lack thereof).

That is hillarious...you need to add more of these. I lived in Florida for 2 years and I loved living there. I only left because of a job transfer. But the first chance I get I am moving back

[Going-2-Florida]

Originally Posted by RMD3819

G2F, I think you are going to be fine here in Florida. You seem to have a sense of balance on what to expect here. We get many dreamers on this board who want to come here based on the weather and ignore everything else. You are clearly not one of them.

That said, the only thing that bugs me is the expectation of being on vacation all year round. This depends on your definition of vacation but if you can structure your life to feel like you are on a perpetual vacation then go for it. People (the dreamers) move here and don't realize they must work, pay bills, drive the kids around, get the car fixed, etc. Things they would not normally do when on vacation-and they are not going to the beach everyday like they thought they would. Of course, you are doing all these things in warmer weather.

I just wanted to caution you about that.

Thank you.

It was a family member who said she is living like she is on vacation in Florida. She tells us all the time that she loves to go to work come home got to the pool, drink tea, bbq, play with her young kids and wait for the hubby to get home. She said living in Ohio you could not do that and since she has lived in Tampa for a while now she tells us that she feels extremely lucky to live in Florida and feels everyday ( like gypsychic said ) she is blessed to be able to live a life in the warm temps year around.

For us, if we can find the perfect area, schools and be able to come home from work and not be locked up in our home for 9 months then it will feel like a vacation just to get outside.

I understand things in Florida are just like her, not all fun and play, but if you need to do something at least you do not have to shiver doing it or slide across the street going to and from.