Colder Weather

As the weather is getting colder, temperature control is going to the opposite extreme. Living in Florida after having spent my entire life near the Great Lakes means that I perceive winter differently than those from Florida or those who have lived in other warm climates for some time. 

My first 2 years in Florida caused me to be disoriented as a new season brought with it seasonal scents, flavors, and traditions. 

Let's turn the clock back a few years to late spring. That's when I moved to Florida. It was warm up north and it was a little warmer in FL. Having the same weather was familiar and did not cause much of a shock to my system. 

As the summer faded into fall, there was talk of pumpkin flavors, cider, and other autumn related things. I was confused to say the least. I couldn't figure out why we were talking about pumpkin when it felt like July. It dawned on me that it was September. But it still felt like July. There wasn't a change in the weather nor was the foliage changing. I couldn't get with it. 

A few months later, gingerbread, Santa, reindeer, and lights were everywhere. I could not tell one season from the other because it still felt like July. 

Two full years cycled for me before I began to sense the seasonal changes, albeit subtle in Florida. 

This fall, something was different. I began to sense the decrease of humidity and a slight crisp in the fall air. I was ready to embrace all things pumpkin!

In the last couple weeks, we've had some cool weather in Florida. The cold snap (which is relative) brought the temperatures down to 40° some nights. Being from the snow belt, this doesn't phase me a whole lot. My husband being African, this is a bit much for him. When one is accustomed to 80°, anything under 60° is quite a difference. It did seem chilly to me for the first time since I moved to FL. 

One such morning, the thermostat read 59° inside our home. That was a chilly morning—even for me! I put on a hoodie and flip flops and headed out the door. I'm not giving up flip flops because I'm in Florida. It's the principle of the thing!