Changing Winds

The winds of change are starting to blow. Coincidentally they often blow and change at similar times of the year. The first wind to blow in was the school countdown, this has begun in earnest as Sophia has started to assemble her necessary gear and begin to face the reality of the end of her summer. Seems a bit preposterous I know, this being Florida where the weather always seems “summer like”, at least to those who live in colder regions anyway. The other winds of change you ask? Hurricanes -- those naturally occurring, seasonal nuisances with all their dread, worry, and fear. Just today it was announced that there’s one “out there”, though well off from Florida’s shores, it does in fact exist. No matter how far a hurricane is one is left with the reality that it’s moving towards us as opposed to away. It’s almost like knowing there will be an accident on your street a certain date, the problem is you don’t know who is going to be affected or to what degree.

School and storms; the two naturally occurring, though completely unrelated changes that seem to ride into town together just when summer was starting to feel routine. Children worry about the “end” of their lazy summer days, whereas adults worry about the danger that lurks beyond the horizon. It is of course the price we pay, so there’s no sense in trying to cry foul now, especially in light of the fact that we complain little about the absence of sleet, snow, and ice in January. Still maybe because I’m not originally from Florida I’ve come to really hate this period up until November 30th. The paranoia, the constant updates, warnings, and predictions, it all gets to be a bit much, never mind what it probably does to a child to be constantly bombarded with warnings of impending danger.

What’s a PinF to do? Well a lot, and nothing really. Number one, you stock up on the time tested items you know you’ll need -- water, candles, batteries, non-perishables and a grill. Then you try, as hard as it may be, to go about as normal an existence as possible, keeping one eye on the weather and the other on your risk tolerance. Having been through 5 or 6 hurricanes, several of which were quite serious, you begin to consider leaving the area if the probability of a direct hit is imminent. This is especially true when you have children, as it seems your tolerance for risk and adventure drops radically when the risk involves a life other than your own.

So here we go. Sophia and I will be out today shopping for the last “must have” items for 4th graders as I eagerly look forward to the time honored tradition of her first day of school next Wednesday. Of course coincidentally enough that would more or less coincide with the arrival of TD #4 Dean that is if it were in fact to continue its path and metamorphosis into a hurricane towards the PinF enclave. The fun is over in more ways than one. Summers’ over for Sophia, and the reality of what lurks is now something I must keep a wary eye on until November 30th. This in fact is just one more facet of being PaynterinFlorida. Though truth be told, it would be nice to one day be known as PaynterinAmsterdam, or maybe even PaynterinLondon, they each have a certain non-threatening ring to them.

Someday maybe.