I love Sarasota

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by imagardener

I agree the weather here is so wonderful it's hard to leave. However now being retired there have been many places I wanted to see such as the West (Utah, New Mexico, Utah) and Alaska and Canada and Vancouver, especially National Parks. So for the past 4 years we've taken 4-6 week trips usually in summer when it's hottest and steamiest.

But this year husband begged me to stay home this summer because he LOVES summers in Florida so that's what we're doing this summer--a staycation lol. I'm looking forward to it too. There's no place like home, especially without tourists.

That is really one of the best things about summer - the lack of tourists and traffic. Don't get me wrong, I am not one who begrudges the tourists or snowbirds AT ALL, they help make this place the great little city it is. But it is nice to have a respite.

[pltrgyst]

Originally Posted by melanie_r

.... I lived and worked in the Washington, D.C. metro region for a few years. I really disliked the traffic and the pace. I met nice people there, but I also found a lot of the people there to be extremely rude and snobby.

I'm curious -- where did you live and work?

Yes, DC traffic is horrible (second worst in the country, behind LA). IMO, the hectic pace of life is key -- and with a large metro population, you're going to find a lot of ambitious people in high-pressure jobs.

My wife and I moved to LWR last year, after 30 years in Gaithersburg, MD and Alexandria, VA. She still goes up there one week each month for work (she's up there right now, AAMoF), and works the rest of the time (for a very high-pressure national healthcare non-profit in DC) from a home office here. She's originally from Colorado; I'm a high-tech/government computer-type from New Jersey. We never noticed any abnormal proportion of "rude and snobby" people in our lives up there, though. Just a lot of very smart, hard-working, and highly-engaged folks...

Originally Posted by melanie_r

Yes, it was hot, rainy, and humid for most of July through September.

We're both tennis players, and we were pleasantly surprised to find that last summer's hottest months down here were no worse than the heat and high humidity we were used to in DC. My wife actually had an easier time acclimating to early afternoon heat on the tennis courts down here!

Originally Posted by melanie_r

....I didn't listen to people who complain about Florida's hot weather, bugs, snowbirds, and drivers.

Well, getting into restaurants, etc. was a pain in the patoot from Thanksgiving until the end of April due to the snowbirds.

Depending on what activities you're into, there are some warnings you might be advised to heed. While traffic down here is very light by comparison. I mean, I-75 and University is NOTHING, even at peak "rush hour" -- I can still drive from LWR to downtown Sarasota Main Street in 20 minutes.

But many oldsters and snowbirds are just horrible, inattentive drivers -- like the woman I saw a few weeks ago driving her car southbound on the northbound side of 301, a few blocks north of Fruitville. As a result, this is statistically an extremely dangerous area for bicyclists and motorcyclists. I'm probably going to sell my motorcycle -- it's just not worth it down here.

Originally Posted by melanie_r

Besides the weather, I found the people in Sarasota to be some of the nicest people I have ever met....

That's because more than half of us are near-vegetables in "God's waiting room."

Seriously, I attribute all that to the reduced pace of life.

-- Larry

[Ladywithafan]

Been in this area for over 20 years, only other place I'd be for "weather" would be San Diego but I hear it's on fire so that may not be an option.