Counting the days till season's end

No, I am not referring to the annual football season. But rather hurricane season.

Until moving to Florida, hurricanes were someone else's problem. But moving down here during the year of the multi-hurricane hits, I quickly set aside a big chunk of time to watch skies and the weather channel. What about that tropical storm developing off of Haiti? We cross our fingers and will the weatherman to tell us that it is NOT heading toward Orlando. The photo shows Hurricane Ivan -- not a picture we like to see on the weather channel. Not, not, not!

I'll be glad to shrug off the storm stress as well as the heat. Both seem to head out to sea together. Cooler temperatures, lower humidity and a gentle breeze all sound wonderful after too many months of sweltering and sweating. My only silver lining is that my skin has never been so frequently exfoliated.

Just because a date comes and goes, that doesn't mean hurricanes can't form at times other than the designated storm season. May through November we consider hurricane season. But once September passes, we begin to breathe more easily again, and in October, we might even skip a weather broadcast now and then. This info about dates and hurricanes is just one of ten myths that appear on Lake Worth's website.

While debunking myths, check out Global Warming Hurricane Myths. And if you're interested in hurricane names, everything you always wanted to know is right here. For the science of hurricanes, visit Howstuffworks.

Now, if there was just as much info available about dealing with humidity and perspiration as there is about hurricanes -- I might find a way to overcome living in a mist, or at least learn to 'enjoy' it.

Seasons

In the Midwest we had Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter seasons. In rural areas we also had planting and harvest seasons. But down here in Florida we have a new division of time. Currently we are in the moment when Love Bug Season meets Hurricane Season. I'm rather hoping that the upside of that convergence is that the love bugs will stop their passionate mating and swarming and the hurricane will blow them out to sea.

Car wash enterprises are as busy as retail stores the day before Christmas. Trying to get smushed bugs off of grills and windshields can become a consuming passion when driving down I-4 and all you can see is bug guts smeared across the windshield. Any price seems reasonable if someone else will remove their little innards from your car. I hear that the bodies turn to cement and must be chipped off if someone takes too long getting around to washing them off.

Florida's seasons also refer to wet and dry. We're entering the rainy season, just left the dry or as some of us call it 'fire' season. Hopefully today's mild rains are enough to extinguish the multiple scrub fires that have ignited across Central Florida.

Whatever season we're in. My three cats and I have learned a secret to judging how severe or risky the day will be. We watch the anoles. Those adorable little bug-eating lizards with detachable tails. Nothing seems to shake them out of their complacent lives, except maybe the shadow of a hawk hovering too close. Otherwise they go about business as usual.

When the anoles disappear, its time to start preparing for nasty weather. Thankfully the anoles look blissfully happy.