November 2013
Florida is an amazing and unexpected place. Nearly two thousand people move to this state every day which is why you will find more people living in Florida than in 47 other states. There are 1250 golf courses in Florida, more than in any other state. Heck, more than in any other galaxy!
Florida is up there in tornado frequency. Florida is #50 in earthquake frequency. The Sunshine State is #2 in credit card delinquencies. The world’s only museum devoted solely to mollusks is in Florida and there are two completely unconnected rivers that have the same name: The Withlacoochee River and the Withlacoochee River. The American alligator is the official state reptile.
Flipper, the television star, whose real name was Mitzi, is buried in Florida. The Fountain of Youth is in St Augustine. So is a Pittsburgh Steelers shrine built in a men’s room. If you don’t remember anything else about these important features of Florida, remember that there is a Pittsburgh Steelers shrine built in a men’s room. In Bithlo, not too far from Orlando, you can watch school buses race on a figure 8 course. I’m pretty sure they empty the busses of students before the race begins. If you go to the Florida Keys, you can stand at the point that is farther south than anywhere else in the continental United States. (Except it isn’t, really.)
The World Erotic Art Museum is in Miami Beach, and is the only museum in the United States devoted entirely to fine erotic art.
How long has it been since you’ve wanted to visit the International Hamburger Hall of Fame! It’s not what you think.
Harry Sperl (Hamburger Harry) in Daytona Beach holds the Guinness World Record for the largest collection of hamburger memorabilia. Who knew!
One of our favorite cemeteries is in Key West, Florida.
My mother lived in Florida.
Florida is struck by lightning more than any other state. A thousand years ago, folks in this land that would become Florida would ring church bells during thunderstorms, believing that the sound waves from the holy bells would suppress lightning. They ceased this practice when someone noticed that, in a 33-year period, 386 church towers were struck by lightning and 103 bellringers died from the strikes.
Britton Hill is the highest land point in Florida. At least 46 buildings in Florida are taller than Britton Hill. The lowest points in sixteen states are higher than the highest point in Florida. Look at a terrain map of Florida and there are no lines on it.
Florida is at least 53,927 square miles in area and no more than 65,755, depending on whose yardstick you use. Having so many islands as part of the state means that, with the tides, area is variable. Still, that’s a lot of area, and yet, there are 21 states larger than Florida.
By percentage, Florida has the oldest population in the United States. Driving on the highways, we look through the back windows of the big cars ahead of us on the highway. On the driver’s side we see two hands on the steering wheel and a Q-tip between.