RETIREE ESCAPING from Syracuse to Dunedin, Florida in 3 Days!!!!

Started out with winter coats, hats, scarves and gloves – bitter cold, icy roads…… on a journey to the sun, the ocean breeze, the blue sky, the palm trees that are the promise of the Sunshine State for those of us who live above the Mason-Dixon line in the winter months. This was the first year the stay was for a month. It is the world of the retirees of the Northern US and Canada…… that journey to escape the cold and the gray to reap the rewards they have worked so hard for. More on this as I explore the snow bird phenomenon and my thoughts about it both general and personal.

RESEARCH and FIRST THOUGHTS

On our way down, we stopped to visit some friends from our town who just moved to a 55+ community in Georgia near Atlanta. They are both retired and have made the commitment to be down South and living in a restricted community. Their home is brand new and had a sparkling interior with beautiful tasteful finishes such as granite counter tops, shining floors, high ceilings and an open floor plan. Along with a new house in this community comes a built in sort of village/family with a large and upscale community center.

This center contained an indoor Olympic sized pool, hot tub, large workout area, ping pong tables, pool tables, rooms set aside for classes in art, fitness, crafts, personal learning, club meetings, community choir rehearsals, special gatherings. In addition, there were tennis courts, pickle ball courts, an outdoor pool and spa next to beautiful landscaping and places to relax and lounge outside.

OK…. Wait for it!.... it is also on a waterway and has a marina with boat slips (for a hefty price) and place to store kayaks. It was very hard not to be impressed and possibly jealous??? So, I had to ask myself:

….. would I be ready to confine myself to a restricted community of retirees/seniors?

 ….sort of an intense overly familiar small town atmosphere where I see the same people all the time and socialize and possibly experience the gossip and cliques that result?

…..Or could I live someplace like that and have so many activities to use/participate in at my will AND be able to take advantage of those that I really would like and avoid the negatives?

---- leave all my friends and relatives up North and all those familiar things – climate, activities, food, stores, institutions……just hope some might like to visit??

When one retires, does it mean a whole new type of life, retro to being like a student on a campus where you hang out mostly with your peers?

This experience in Georgia followed me as I traveled farther South and discovered that these types of communities appear to be everywhere and new ones being built and existing ones expanded.  Most are behind stone walls and fences and promise untold luxuries. Is it the baby boomer retiree population stimulating this or seniors asserting their desire and entitlement to live out their lives in the luxury and play time for seniors they always dreamed of?

I don’t have the answers yet, but will be keeping my powers of observation and ‘curious minds want to know’ cap on to explore this phenomenon.

                                         

So, back to my original word. 3 days later, here I am in Dunedin, Florida. The sky is blue, the temperature is in the 70s, the ocean is near and I am retired, on vacation and this is February.

The new adventure begins.