How Newcomers Get Folded Into a Florida Neighborhood Faster Than You Expect

Will You Know Anyone When You Move to Florida? The moving truck pulls away, and for a moment the house is just you, a stack of boxes, and the echo of an empty room. You carry a box to the kitchen and hear a knock at the front door. A woman about your age stands on the step with a plate covered in fo

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What a Florida Night Sounds Like: Tree Frogs, Crickets and the Hum of the Marsh

What Does a Quiet Night Sound Like in Northeast Florida? You turn off the lamp on the lanai and the night shows up in layers. First the crickets, steady and bright. Then a chorus of tree frogs somewhere near the pond, rising and falling like an orchestra tuning up. A mockingbird, strangely, gives a

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The After-Dinner Walk: Why Everyone in Northeast Florida Goes Outside at Dusk

Why Does the Whole Neighborhood Come Outside at Sunset? The dishes are done, or at least stacked, and the light outside has turned the color of peach tea. You clip on the leash, grab a light layer, and step out the front door. A neighbor you met last month waves from a driveway. A couple walks by pu

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