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February 28, 2004
THE LIST... #5: THE PALM COAST OF FLORIDA
Okay, so this one is harder to write about today than it used to be. But, this list is for places I've gone for work, and the fact is that I really liked it here - so much so that I was at one point prepared to move there had circumstances warranted.
The stretch of Florida between Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale - what they call the Palm Coast - is an exciting, fun place. It's not so much full of things to do - the tourist traps are elsewhere in the state - but the lifestyle is so laid back, so relaxed, so much like a Jimmy Buffett song come to life, that I found it absolutely wonderful. Places like downtown Delray Beach offer great food and fun places to see live music. The weather is phenomenal - you get used to the humidity pretty quickly - and the sun is out almost every day of the year.
But beyond the weather, I just found the laid back nature of the lifestyle there to be the biggest drawing point. New York - and to a lesser extent, DC and Boston - is ridiculously intense, in fact I believe too intense. There's more to life than work, not everything is a competition, and relaxing doesn't make you lazy, it makes you a healthier person. These are lessons I re-learned while spending time in south Florida. When I say that everything there feels like a Jimmy Buffett song come to life, I mean just that. I can see where Buffett's music comes from now.
The bars and restaurants along the Intracoastal Waterway are fun, relaxing places with amazing seafood, a fantastically informal atmosphere, and are just great places to have a drink while feeling a breeze coming off the water, watching the boats go by, and enjoying being outside. I want to spend my life in places like Boston's on the Beach and the Old Key Lime House - which both make my list of top ten favorite places of all, work-related or personal-related. And if I ever win the lottery or sell that best seller, I can assure you that I'll be moving to this area to retire.
Okay, so maybe my fondness for this area isn't wholly work-related; I'll concede that. Nonetheless, out of all the places I've ever discovered through work, this was the one place where I'd like to retire or move to when I get rich... and that tells me it needs to be on the list. Coming soon... #4.
