[tercel95]

I just moved here from MD and love it... It got just as hot and humid in MD as it does down here so it is nothing I haven't seen before... If you have a good attitude about it, chances are it won't bother you that much. Yeah I walk outside and I'm like "man, its hot..." but I know that I live in FL and that is what you get here so it doesn't bother me... Plus I never have to shovel another driveway again...

My northern depression was paying $1100/month for a 1 br apartment... Which was cured because of the insanely low cost of living here in JAX... I love it here, FL has really changed my life for the better...

[TANaples]

Originally Posted by verobeach

There's plenty of time for dreary darkness after you're dead.

Florida is about sunshine and the weather. I love that we can grill year round, enjoy a cocktail on the patio in January, walk the beach in February, play golf and garden year round. I love looking at palm trees and hibiscus year round instead of dead brown grass and naked stick branches. If you don't like sunshine then you don't like living.

is just as real as the Winter version. Would you say the same thing to somebody who hates the cold and snow? Of your would agree with them. I love the Fall and Winter with all the activities associated with it. There are people that like skiing (snow), snowboarding, sledding, ice skating, etc. As a child I spent my summers in an ice rink skating all the time.

I don't like any of those things that Florida has. I never did them in the "few" months of summer up North. I basically just ignored summers up North, but it is impossible in Florida with 12 months of it. Florida has just made it all worse for me. Different strokes for different folks.

I am just trying to cope in any way I can until we can retire in a few years and move back North.

[stars99]

It might be helpful to try some new things here since you're going to be here several more years. Birdwatching, go to the everglades, find people to play bridge with, go to play slot machines at one of the Indian casinos, if they have one of those down in Naples, go to an amusement park, visit art exhibits in Sarasota for a day. There must be something here that you can enjoy. "Being determined to be miserable" probably won't work as a long term plan.

Originally Posted by TANaples

is just as real as the Winter version. Would you say the same thing to somebody who hates the cold and snow? Of your would agree with them. I love the Fall and Winter with all the activities associated with it. There are people that like skiing (snow), snowboarding, sledding, ice skating, etc. As a child I spent my summers in an ice rink skating all the time.

I don't like any of those things that Florida has. I never did them in the "few" months of summer up North. I basically just ignored summers up North, but it is impossible in Florida with 12 months of it. Florida has just made it all worse for me. Different strokes for different folks.

I am just trying to cope in any way I can until we can retire in a few years and move back North.

[Tru Fan]

Originally Posted by verobeach

There's plenty of time for dreary darkness after you're dead.

Florida is about sunshine and the weather. I love that we can grill year round, enjoy a cocktail on the patio in January, walk the beach in February, play golf and garden year round. I love looking at palm trees and hibiscus year round instead of dead brown grass and naked stick branches. If you don't like sunshine then you don't like living.

While is is true that one can play golf year round, I dont know many who can take the summer heat and humidity while playing golf from the end of May until about October. Unless they go early in the AM, and I mean early.

[seeriously]

I don't play golf but husband plays. He plays year round usually around 10 a.m. He loves it... says he's built up an immunity to the heat. He just left about 10 minutes ago... 11:20 a.m. and it's 85 already.

[Tru Fan]

I have a family member who plays all the time too. I am a FL native, and I cant take being out there for hrs straight in the summer heat and humidity. I'm spent after mowing my lawn (which is on the traditional FL cookie-cutter sized lot.

[itsajourney]

I had to smile when reading thru your question....I spent 40 years between Illinois and Pennsylvania--had enough of those grey skies to last a lifetime..We have been in Florida for 9 years now and still don't have a desire to leave the sunshine. It's kind of funny tho-the constant sun has an energy to it that is always "go, go, go". My husband and I have on occassion found ourself wishing for a rainy, cloudy day just to kick back and hibernate. One day is all we need tho--then we are ready for the sunshine energy again....Can tell you for sure that the last few weeks we had that were nothing but rain, rain, and more rain....were more than enough cloudy skies for us. We are glad to be back in sunshine mode now...

[Kathleen1971]

Originally Posted by Tru Fan

While is is true that one can play golf year round, I dont know many who can take the summer heat and humidity while playing golf from the end of May until about October. Unless they go early in the AM, and I mean early.

I thought the same way until I moved up from Miami to Sun City Center several years ago. There are folks out there golfing in all weather from sun up to sun down with no problems whatsoever. The real kicker is that they are the over age 70 set!

My grandma's next door neighbor was a die hard golf fanatic and was out there every day and not only was he in is his mid 80's, he was also overweight and smoked. How he withstood the heat I do not know but if all those old folks can do it I see no reason why the young ones can't either if they want to.

[TANaples]

My husband only plays from May 1 to October 31. We don't have golf equity where we live and as such, cannot play on this course in season. It is the same with the other private courses. Members only, or a guest of one, during season. There aren't very many public courses.

He goes at 7 AM in the summer and usually finished about 1 PM. Unfortunately, his back, and now vertigo, has kept him from playing this year. He can take the heat more than I can, but it seems the heat makes the vertigo worse now even just walking around outside. He is 60.

[dmccauley]

I understand that you suffer from SAD, however you really should ask yourself, how important is family and friends to you? Are they a huge part of your life right now? If you moved would your sad turn into just depression because you don't have family support? I also had my mind made up and was nervous as hell, researched etc. I thought they will come and visit. Well its not that easy. They work and airfare for a family could be expensive. Don't count on them visiting or following you, would you still be ok with that? I have lived here for 4 years and decided that as much as I hated the gloomy days up north, I miss my friends and family and realize their role in my life outways the sun any day. Good Luck