There's No Place Like Home


If living in Florida is so dangerous, then why have so many of us migrated  here?               

It's no secret, Mother Nature's tough on the sunny state inhabitants. For starters, six months out of the year there are threats of hurricanes. This season is supposed to be one of the worst; Floridians had an unusual long cold winter followed up by a sudden heat wave.  The ocean water is warmer and storms are predicted to be on the rise. There is plenty of rain in Florida. The heavy storm down pours flood most streets around rush hour. That’s always fun. Not! Those same storm cells also hurl thunderbolts.

Lightning sirens at parks, schools and most outdoor recreation areas sound off telling everyone to seek shelter and there’s a good reason for that. “Waiting to see or hear the first stroke of lightning means that you’ve been at risk of a direct lightning strike for 30 minutes or more already.” http://www.spectrumthunderbolt.com/lightningfacts02.html. One night the local news posted over 6,000 strikes in the tri-county area.

“A stroke of lightning discharges up to several hundred million volts of electricity and produces a current up to several hundred thousand amperes. In an average lightning stroke there are 30,000 amperes. By way of comparison, 240 volts and a current of 1 ampere flow through a 100-watt light bulb.” http://www.enotes.com/science-fact-finder/weather-climate/how-many-volts-lightning Yikes!

What about the critters? They were here first and I’m not referring to the Seminole Indians. Florida has its share of bugs and beasts. The humid hot temperatures make Florida the perfect breading ground for fleas, fire ants, gross cockroaches and man pinching water bugs. There are snakes, alligators, huge snapping turtles, black bears, panthers, and sharks!

“Florida beaches have produced the greatest amounts of unprovoked shark attacks.” “Though part of the reason that attacks happen more frequently during the spring and summer months have less to do with the people using the beaches than of sharks coming into shallow water to give birth. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/303998/best_florida_beaches_for_a_shark_attack.html.

With hurricanes, rush hour rain, flooding, lightning bolts, bugs, beasts, and (I would be remiss if I didn't mention the horrid oil spill), why do so many come legally and illegally each year? Why do so many people stay?

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