Believe me mosquitoes love the salt marsh here and it is all salt as there is no fresh water in my area.

The St. Johns is a large body of water that exits to the Atlantic through a very narrow channel. The current there is fierce.

Hmmm, If it's not the salt water, then I wonder how they keep their mosquitoes at bay? Seems like a prime mosquito playground around here.

Shhhh dont ask.

I was on the west coast in Jan..and no mosquitoes either ..sarasota ..palm coast... then onto Mt. Dora area..no mosquitoes .. shhhh

Y'all best hush up before the air gremlins hear & take their revenge! You will be knee deep in swarms so thick you can't see through them. Do not forget about no see ums either. Vile creatures!!!

Lived in Jacksonville (Orange Park) back in 86 while doing construction on a base there. I remember people saying that the reason behind the St. Johns flowing North was because Georgia sucked - don't shoot me I am just repeating what I heard many many moons ago :)

James I see those plummies out on the patio Hope they are well.

Ann,

They always say that the reason its so windy in Texas is because Oklahoma sucks, but Oklahomans say that it's windy in Oklahoma because Texas blows, so I guess it goes both ways.

Yes, my plumies are doing well, thank you!

Welcome to Florida, James. Just catching up here after having to pack up and head back to AR for taxes, appointments, etc. I don't find many mosquitoes in DeLand, where we are, either. I really hated to leave FL because we had one of the best winters in the 13 years we have been there.

Oh that's hysterical.

Not really related ..but reminds me about poking fun of states, etc.,

A person once told me that I was a halfback...


I moved to Florida from Brooklyn, NY ..and then moved halfway back to NC!

From the absolute opposite corner of the US - the Pacific Northwest - we have visited Florida and refer to it as the land of the walnuts (old, brown, wrinkly people) and/or water and weeds - no discernible elevation gain (OK maybe the freeway ramps). No offense intended. It was lovely. I especially liked bobbing in the very placid ocean, so different from the Pacific. I think I read somewhere that the salt content is higher in the Atlantic, sure seemed like it to me.

Bonehead said:From the absolute opposite corner of the US - the Pacific Northwest - we have visited Florida and refer to it as the land of the walnuts (old, brown, wrinkly people) and/or water and weeds - no discernible elevation gain (OK maybe the freeway ramps).

Yep, there are many old, brown, wrinkly people here and WEEDS, WEEDS, WEEDS! I really do think the weeds multiply overnight. My sister and brother in law who live down the street from us are not into gardening but they love having flowers. They are currently having a new roof put on their house and when the construction is done they want to redo all the flower beds. They asked me what plants they could fill flower beds with that would keep the weeds out because they do not want to weed. I just laughed.

There sure isn't much discernible elevation here in Florida, that's for sure, some cities are just 10 feet above sea level and of course in the southern part of the state it's even less. Miami is only 6 feet above sea level!! We lived in Daytona Beach for more than 40 years (elevation about 13 feet) and I remember back in the early 90's a 10 foot rogue wave hit the area and boats smashed into cars along highway A1A. It was really strange and we were glad to live on the mainland rather than the barrier island!

Well, Deb, there is a chance we may be joining you over there. We are going to stay in Jax, if we can, but when the NAVY says go, you go, and you seldom get to actually pick. We may end up Northwest of Seattle, WA by next Spring.

Enjoy the heck out of Florida in the time you have there, James. I like the Pacific Northwest. My sister lives there, and plants grow well there. They have some really fantastic nurseries, and wonderful shopping and cultural events. The weather is gloomy, but you just ignore that and keep busy.

Here's hoping we just stay in sunny Florida for now. I can deal with cold, once I get acclimated, but gloomy for days is something that I have a hard time coping with. I am definitely a heliophile. It can be 36, as long as it's sunny out. My mood diminishes, my motivation drops, and I just want to sleep all the time.

My sister in law in upstate N.Y. told me that they have overcast, gray skies all winter and sometimes don't see the sun for months! That was such a shock to me and it certainly helped me to understand the disorder called SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder.) I guess having lived in Florida for 50 year, I never realized some places have dreary, cloudy days for months on end.

They've had the gloomiest, coldest, rainiest winter on record in Seattle this year. Here's hoping the Navy decides to leave you where you are! You absolutely will hate it in WA in the winter.

(speaking as a Pac. NW transplant who migrated diagonally across the continent)

dyzzypyxxy said: You absolutely will hate it in WA in the winter.

Ah now, that isn't necessarily so. Much depends on what a person is accustomed to and/or prefers. I am a temperate person and love the PNW in all of its seasons. There is plenty of weather-proof clothing for rain and wind, but nothing can really counter extreme heat, which rather turns me into a raving lunatic. No thanks for me to either the SW dessert or the southern tropics, although both are great for short visits.

James, if you do get stationed in WA, I assume it would be out on Whidbey Island which is quite lovely - lots of rural areas, slow-paced, with wonderful gardens and nurseries.

I've always wanted to visit the Pacific NW and hope to someday but I don't think at my age I could get used to rainy, windy weather full time. It is all what a person becomes accustomed to. The older I get, the more the humidity gets to me. There was a time I could work outside from sunup until sundown without any problems but now I tend to get overheated really quickly and have to be extra careful. My husband and I have been working in the yard the past few weeks and last week I almost passed out twice ... scared me! I would love to be a snowbird and live here in Florida during the winter and somewhere mild in the summer months!

I do love it up there in the summertime, and we always go in August to see our family in Vancouver. But those short, grey winter days, with so much rain - and this year snow! Nuh, uh! We moved to Salt Lake City in 1981 and since then hardly ever could stand to visit in winter, even our Christmas visits were rare and very short. Always a relief to cross Snoqualmie Pass and break into the sunshine again.

Now, even the winter weather in Salt Lake gets me down. I just returned from there and it was cold and rainy for at least half of my visit. Very depressing and also makes my arthritis flare up. Nope, once you're used to warm weather and sun, you begin to wonder how you survived the cold, dark winters.

You're right though, Deb. The hot humid summers here can wear on a person as well. It's indoor weather for sure, but at least there's sunshine and beautiful flowers in the view through the windows as we bask in the air conditioning. Evenings here are quite nice even in summer though. We get a lovely sea breeze and often to walking on the beach or play 9 holes of golf in the summer as long as the thunderstorms aren't still around.

I didn't even think about how it would affect my arthritis ... my fingers are getting more and more gnarled with each passing year, especially the fingers of my right hand; bent fingers that ache so much when it's cold!