Snow gardening in Wentzville, not Florida, Winter 1990-91
Snow takes a permanent holiday in Florida. Well, at least there's not enough of the stuff to stop the school buses from running and make the kids want to play outside all day when it's finally bone-chilling cold enough to kill the mosquitoes. They--the mosquitoes--have been multiplying like crazy in this time of high unemployment and foreclosure when properties must be vacated and untended swimming pools serve as breeding grounds. An evening walk had best be kept at a brisk pace now. It's also a good idea to continue that walking conversation with a talkative neighbor indoors instead of standing underneath the streetlight outside her house. Anyway, it's nice to think about the snow covering up the drab dullness of a Northwest Florida Winter landscape. Escaping the reality of a soon-to-be-frostbitten garden is now just a click away.
I can't imagine my life without snow. I have only lived one winter without it and that was when I was a girl on sabbatical with my parents in N.Z.
ReplyDeleteI never thought about mosquitoes getting out of hand as a side effect of the financial crisis. That aspect did not even enter my head. The misery just keeps piling up!
ReplyDeleteRosey, for me it's nice to just imagine it. I've driven in it and been housebound too many times to wish for it again. Slipping and falling ain't much fun either. I'll get my fix at blogs like yours.
ReplyDeleteAnn, I'm sorry to be the bringer of more bad news! Please don't shoot the messenger. For some strange reason, I'm always glad to learn something unexpected, unpleasant though it might be. Don't worry, though. The mosquitoes will be gone soon enough, and the foreclosured homes will be occupied by new tenants or owners once more.
I think this must be your shortest post ever. A nice thought about the snow killing off mosquitos. I never thought of it in that way usually I am hating it because I have to drive in it. Now, not so much-I just relax indoors. Maybe you might get some?
ReplyDeleteGiven a choice between snow and mosquitoes, I think I'll take snow:) But if this winter is anything like the last one, by February I'll be envying all of you living in Florida.
ReplyDeleteTina, I kept it short because the link at the end directs you to yet another post on my other blog, Big Bend Over Easy in Florida:) We actually did get a smidgen of snow one day last winter. I think they even canceled school in some areas because drivers and vehicles just aren't equipped to handle any amount of it here.
ReplyDeleteRose, it's only after dark that you have to worry about the mosquitoes. During the daytime, those wonderful dragonflies are hard at work keeping up with them. I've seen more dragons this year than ever before. After dark, the bats get busy, but there aren't nearly enough of them around. If those empty houses remain vacant long enough, though, that could change.
I’ve been squinting up at my oaks hoping they’ll drop the last of their leaves before we get our first snowfall in Maine. Hard to imagine winter without snow. Your comment about mosquitoes makes me happier about our long winter. Still, I will be envying you all too soon.
ReplyDeleteThe mosquito menace of not contained can cause havoc.
ReplyDeleteSarah, the falling leaves never end in Florida, what with all of the live oaks and pine trees, along with the deciduous varieties, native and introduced. I don't mind the mosquitoes too much because I'm usually inside or moving fast enough to dodge them when they're out in the evening. Besides, they keep the dragonflies and bats fat and happy.
ReplyDeleteHaddock, they can be a menace at times, especially with the diseases they carry. In this part of Florida, we do get a break from them in the winter.