Florida Heat

Florida is a hobo's dream. It has anything a vagabond needs on a journey. At night, I can park my car relatively close to the beach in safe retirement communities without worry to eat my can of pork and beans or tortillas and peanut butter in peace before sleeping for the night. In the morning, I can throw on swimming shorts and a sportsbra and hit a beautiful white sand beach to do a morning run. This is even better during the off season because these beaches are practically abandoned so the wildlife enjoy the water with you. After a good run, I can take my shower caddy and use the rinse shower outside the bathrooms and just bathe in my running clothes (shampoo is practically laundry soap, right?). Then, I can eat breakfast or lunch at a picnic bench while I wait for the clothes and towel to dry.

It was during one of these routines that I met the Turkish students. A guy offered to press the shower flow button for me while I washed my hair and it went from there. Pretty soon, we were caravaning to Panama City Beach. In an instance of the blind leading the blind, it took extra long to find what we were looking for. Also along the way, we passed under a funnel cloud:

Slightly terrifying as it was RIGHT over my car and I could see it forming. All the Floridians around me seemed unfazed so I thought maybe I was being overly dramatic. Then when we got to Panama City Beach, a restaurant owner asked, "Did you see the funnel cloud we had here today??" Yes, I did see it. A great close up from right below!!

Unfortunately, I still had many hours to get to my next destination so the students and I parted ways at a live music bar on the beach (they stopped their rental car in front of a homeless man to ask where a good place to go was. He was quite helpful) and I tried to make it to Treasure Island.

Treasure Island is a resort town on an island outside of the Tampa Bay area. I visited probably 15 business to get 20 surveys filled. Because it's the off season, the workers were more willing to help me out. One, after filling out my survey, bought me a sea star (that's sitting in my car right now) as a good luck charm for my trip. Very sweet!

Now I'm north of Miami, staying with a friend of a friend. She has been wonderful to let me stay with her and it's been really fun hanging out and getting my butt kicked at Wii. Nothing like playing PS3 with a 17 year old boy to make you feel 1. old and 2. such a girl.

Now that Hurricane Irene and blown far enough north, it's safe for me to head in its direction. Next stop is Eastman, Georgia. Here's a map of the route I've taken so far:
View Happiness Ahead Project in a larger mapThe purple cameras are the places I've done interviews so far, the blue placemarks are the cities I have yet to do.

3 weeks down...who knows how many to go! Til next time!