Leaf Peepers and Snowbirds

You can feel it in the air and see it starting to change. Fall. When the weather finally cools off, and the sweaters come out. I can always tell when my favorite time of year is slowly arriving.

I notice it first in the number of out-of-state license plates. Then the traffic on the main roads start to fill up, and more time is needed to get across town. I notice it in the lines at restaurants. Up north, they are called "leaf peepers". Down here in Florida, we call them "snowbirds". The annual migration of the "northerners" to our warm climate.

My kids and I play our annual game of "how many states will we see". We see lots of New York plates and you can always hear them in restaurants. There is no denying that accent. Most of them are vertically challenged. Maybe that is why they speak with such big voices...so they aren't overlooked. Michigan is well represented, and so are most of the northeastern states. We see a few Californians every year, but not many. They have their own coast. I grew up there. Florida has better weather overall. We don't have fog in the weather sense of the word. We have "foggy" snowbirds though. They make u turns, or stop in the middle of the road, no matter if its safe or not. They will slow down to look at road signs. I've seen them drive on sidewalks, and do some of the craziest things. They like to drive really fast on the freeway. Pileups on freeways caused by fog is a very serious situation in California. Pileup from snowbirds in Florida are also tragic. Sometimes, I have forewarning when a potential accident is about to happen. Snowbirds, bless their short little hearts, can hardly see over the steering wheel. When driving behind them, the car looks like its driving itself. My mother is short, and she uses a pillow to sit on. Kinda like a senior booster seat. She lives in California and when its foggy, she stays home.

The best license plates to see are from far away. Canada and Mexico are fun to spot. The grand prize goes to Hawaii, with a close second Alaska. I can understand why someone would want to come here for the winter if they lived in Alaska. But Hawaii? Paradise? It must be because all the snowbirds that don't come to Florida, go to Hawaii. Or maybe they can blend in better there.

The peepers see leaves of change - orange, red, and brown. It is breathtaking. We see changes of grey, with very large cars. That also takes our breath away. Change is always a good thing, I think. Keeps all of us on our toes.