Wednesday, December 20, 2006

"old" Florida is slowly vanishing

As a kid, I used to dream about living in Florida someday. Back then it seemed like some far away, tropical paradise. I remember reading the Power Boys mystery book (similar to the Hardy Boys) and the story took place during a hurricane in Florida. I have now lived through a few of those hurricanes!

As more and more people move to Florida, there are changes taking place all around us. "Where are all the people coming from?" is a question my wife and I constantly ask each other. What was once "country" living in the big city of Jax, is now being developed into subdivisions and condos as fast as possible. The challenge to our state is to keep parts of Florida as "Old Florida" so that the next generation will be able to enjoy the natural habitat.

To see a story that depicts "Old Florida" you should watch the movie "Hoot" on DVD. I can recommend this movie as one that you and your family will enjoy. There are a couple of scary scenes with snakes and gators, but no bad language or sexual scenes to worry about. And part of the movie was filmed at Silver Springs in Ocala, Florida, almost in our back yard! I am not an environmentalist by any stretch of the imagination, but after living in Florida and watching nature disappear around us, I can only agree with the message of this story.

1 comment:

  1. Anonymous11:27 AM

    The reason is because states like Wisconsin have such high taxes it drives away business & retirees to places like Florida where taxes are reasonable. oh yeah, and the weather. I talked to people at the bike shop that moved from up north and they always hated shoveling snow and everything that goes with it.

    Stephen

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