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| Even though we have had a few low temps lately I am reminded how good I have it when I received this email from a friend in upstate New York where I lived most of my life. I know many of you are transplants from cold areas and thought you might enjoy this oh so true funny.
Happy to be a chicken. Nancy Jeff Foxworthy on Upstate New York
If you consider it a sport to gather your food by drilling through 36 inches of ice and sitting there all day hoping that the food will swim by, you might live in Upstate New York.
If you're proud that your region makes the national news 96 nights a year because Saranac Lake is the coldest spot in the nation, and Syracuse gets more snow than any other major city in the US , you might live in Upstate, NY.
If your local Dairy Queen is closed from October through May, you might live in Upstate New York.
If you get 131 inches of snow in a week and you comment that 'winter's finally here', you might live near Oswego in Upstate New York.
If you instinctively walk like a penguin for six months out of the year, you might live, bundled up, in Upstate New York.
If someone in a Home Depot store offers you assistance, and they don't work there, you might live in Upstate NY.
If your dad's suntan stops at a line curving around the middle of his forehead, you might live in Upstate New York.
If you have worn shorts and a parka on the same day, you might live in Upstate New York.
If you have had a lengthy phone conversation with someone who dialed a wrong number, you might live in Upstate New York.
You know you are a true Upstate New Yorker when:
'Vacation' means going South past Syracuse for the weekend.
You measure distance in hours.
You know several people who have hit a deer more than once.
You often switch from 'heat' to 'A/C' in the same day and back again.
You can drive 65 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard, without flinching.
You install security lights on your house and garage and leave both unlocked.
You carry jumper cables in your car and your girlfriend/wife knows how to use them.
You design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.
Driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow.
You know all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter, and road construction.
You can identify a southern or eastern accent.
Down South to you means Corning.
Your neighbor throws a party to celebrate his new shed.
You go out for a fish fry every Friday.
Your 4th of July picnic was moved indoors due to frost.
You have more miles on your snow blower than your car.
You find 10 degrees 'a little chilly' and 55 is shorts weather.
You actually understand these jokes, and you forward them to all your Upstate New York friends and to those who used to live here and left. Chickens!
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Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by trinigemini 10 (My Page) on Thu, Nov 20, 08 at 12:10
| Teka very funny....I went to college up in Buffalo. It started snowing before thanksgiving and didn't stop until spring. What surprised me though is there could be snow on the ground and I still saw people walking around with socks and sandals and short sleeves. I loved upstate....NY is so beautiful. I like the weather down here better though....I keep saying for global warming to hurry up so I can move back up North. :-) The gardens in the summer are so pretty and in the winter the ice on the trees make it look like a postcard. Most of all though I miss the people up north. It was so easy to have an intelligent conversation with people in the street....down here that seems like a pipe dream. |
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- Posted by teka2rjleffel z10FL (My Page) on Thu, Nov 20, 08 at 12:49
| I miss the people there too. There are good people everywhere. I can't really compare. I was living in a small town there and the city here. I think people here are just more rushed than they were there. I notice after a hurricane when we are all gathered in the street, people are decent. I really don't miss the weather there though. Nancy |
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- Posted by trinigemini 10 (My Page) on Thu, Nov 20, 08 at 14:35
| I lived Queens, Buffalo and Long Island. Now down here I live in Miami. I think there are good people everywhere too. I just remember being in the city and being able to having an intellectual conversation almost anywhere...even in clubs and bars. Down here in Miami, its very different. I don't speak Spanish so that in general is a barrier to good conversation down here. (At least for me) I guess in Miami we (meaning hubby and I)just feel more secluded....and yes I do mean more than NY city :-) I guess its why I came to garden web. The conversations here are usually quite amusing and I can feel connected to people. I am dying to move to Jupiter to be closer to some GW friends. The weather down here is perfect though. I love being able to go outside in dec and jan without hat, gloves, coat, scarves etc :-) Its November and I'm still gardening. You can't beat that. My lemons are now starting to ripen and my strawberry plants are looking good again. |
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- Posted by diane_v_44 Z6 (My Page) on Thu, Nov 20, 08 at 20:25
| I am Canadian and yes it has been cold and we have lots of snow I have done my thing, to get into the winter spirit Shoveled the drive a couple of times. Well mostly once, as my next door neigbhour came over and has been ding it since with the snow blower But I somewhat enjoyed to do the job, "once". I am heading down to Fort Myers, this Monday, along with a lot of other snowbirds. Can't wait to get there your cool temperatures sound okay to me. Isn't it Thanksgiving this weekend in United States I forget, or maybe it is next weekend. Canadian Thanksgiving is always in October. Can't wait to see how my gardens are keeping when I get there. |
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| I grew up in Michigan, your message applies perfectly to that area as well! And Teka, I must say I'm loving the ming aralia from the swap. The roses are faring well! Don't mean to hijack, but had to say thanks. Diane, it will be Thanksgiving this weekend, and welcome back to the Sunshine State! I'm not an expet with veggies or herbs, but you'll find good advice here. My best luck has been with container growing. |
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| My thoughts exactly! Florida is a great place to live! I have lived here most of my life although, I wasn't to thrilled when my parents moved us down here from Missouri when I was 14. Now that I have been here over 44 years I could never leave. I see the temperatures in the winter everywhere else and just can not imagine putting up with that everyday for months. At least when it gets cold here, it usually only lasts for a few days. Gardening is so much fun and, rewarding down here too. It is always green! There are always lots of flowers and butterflies. I couldn't imagine living anywhere else. |
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| I also am so happy to live in Florida. Do wish sometimes we lived farther south. Would like to do more tropicals. I consider myself a Floridian as I had no control where my parents were when I was born. Seriously though I never regretted for one minute moving from NY. |
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- Posted by the_musicman z9 FL (My Page) on Fri, Nov 21, 08 at 14:53
| I'm going to straddle the divide here. I am also another Northern transplant. But I grew up here in Tampa, and this is home for right now. I do miss the pronounced seasons and certain cultural and geographical aspects of living in the Northeast... However, being here has its own charms; I can garden year-round, I love the ocean, mangroves and the scrub-lands. Every place has something to offer. I can appreciate Florida for what it is. Happy to be living in Florida. Yeah, ok. I'm on board :) |
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- Posted by flowerlady6 z10 Fl (My Page) on Sun, Nov 23, 08 at 10:11
| Florida is wonderful for about 6 months, which we are in the start of right now. Then hurricane season starts and so does the apprehensiveness as we watch and wait to see what the hurricanes are going to do. I lived here as a toddler, moved away, then back again, in 1960. DH moved here from upstate NY with his family in 1957. Right now it is just perfectly, gorgeous weather, and this is what we wish we could have all year long. This morning I went out with the camera to see what I could capture to share of my humble tropical/cottage gardens. I then resized and uploaded them then posted them in my blog. If any of you care to see them click on the link below. Enjoy the day and have a wonderful Thanksgiving week. FlowerLady |
Here is a link that might be useful: Sunday's Blooms
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- Posted by teka2rjleffel z10FL (My Page) on Sun, Nov 23, 08 at 11:39
| Your photos are lovely as always Flower Lady. Your roses look great. How big does Louis Phillip get? You make a good point. There are good and bad things about every climate. Nancy |
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- Posted by flowerlady6 z10 Fl (My Page) on Sun, Nov 23, 08 at 12:03
| Thanks Nancy ~ I have one LP that is higher than my shed and growing up with a bougainvillea of almost the same color. You can see a brighter red bloom upper right that is a LP bloom. I did some pruning recently so there's not as many rose blooms up there. The limbs were creeping across the shed's roof. The Cottage Rose I think that's the name of it, is the one that you gave me and I love it. It is in my main garden. The other one you gave me is Smith's Parish and it's in the garden back by my potting area. It's a really nice rose also. I thank you very much for both of them. Yes there are good and bad points about living anywhere. Tornadoes, ice storms, fires, freezing temps, hot and humid temps. We try to learn contentment and to see the beauty in wherever we live and try to ignore the bad. I was just out for about 1 1/2 hours pulling ferns out of my main garden, they had taken it over and little by little I am getting them out of there. FlowerLady
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- Posted by trinigemini 10 (My Page) on Sun, Nov 23, 08 at 13:03
| Flowerlady....It looks like your roses are in full sun? Is that so? I have a mini rose I bought at publix of all places...but it was really pretty ..yellow and red....anyway when it was getting sun it was always wilted....I moved it to where it is mostly shade and now it looks healthy. |
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- Posted by naplesgardener Englewood FL (My Page) on Sun, Nov 23, 08 at 13:59
| teka (Nancy) I really like Jeff Foxworthy's humor, thanks for a laugh. He is the Will Rogers of today. We took a car trip to NY State and loved it, saw waterfalls and gorges. Watkins Glen State Park is simply awesome. And Ithaca is "gorge-ous". (That's a NY joke that it took me a long time to get.) Flower Lady imatallun Denise |
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- Posted by flowerlady6 z10 Fl (My Page) on Sun, Nov 23, 08 at 15:11
| Trini ~ Most of my roses are in full sun. I have two that get shade and they don't bloom as much, I really need to move them. ~ Publix has great little mini's from time to time. Enjoy! Naplesgardener ~ If I can grow roses here in zone 10, then you should be able to there. I love my roses and am so happy I ignored someone many years ago when they told me roses don't grow in FL. Not all will, but there are some that are very happy growing here. FlowerLady |
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- Posted by junkyardgirl (My Page) on Mon, Nov 24, 08 at 21:03
| I can see we still have a tattletale here who has posts they don't like removed. That's sad. |
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