Dear Reader,
The weather is a big deal in Florida. People are always talking about it. Almost every phone conversation that I have includes the, "What's the temp there today?" question. This time of year, I'm usually talking to someone who's knee-deep in snow, so I minimize my response and quickly try to change the subject. But lately, we've been in a freeze of our own. Well, that may be a tad bit of an exaggeration--considering the temperatures in the rest of the country--but ask anyone here and they will tell you that the past few days have been way too cold. In fact, the only people who aren't complaining about the weather are the tourists....
Now there's a true Florida tourist. It's freezing here this morning by our standards (58 degrees), but he's coming out of the Quick Mart wearing a light summer jacket, shorts--with bare legs and sandals--a newspaper under his arm, and sauntering along like he doesn't have a care in the world, including the temperature.
I, on the other hand, am wearing boots, long pants, a long-sleeved sweater, a leather jacket--zipped up tight--and I'm holding a cup of coffee to warm my hands. I thought about breaking out my wool coat, the one I wear when I visit New York City. But I didn't want to get too radical, because by this afternoon the sun will have taken the bite out of the air, and I'll have to start peeling off some of the layered clothing I applied to my frost-bitten body this morning.
The bare-legged Florida vacationer is a happy camper, and I suppose that I should be as well--in spite of the weather--because it's really all in how you look at it. And later today when I'm in New York, that 56 degrees will be looking pretty darn warm.
Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.
Suzanne Beecher
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This month's Penguin Classic is The Best of Everything by Rona Jaffe, Introduction by Rachel Syme. Start Reading and enter for your chance to win a copy of your own.
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