How long does it take a new California resident to gasp at a price tag? Usually about as long as the drive from the airport to the first gas station. The moving boxes aren’t even unpacked before their budget needs a rewrite. These are the prices that make California transplants do a double-take. 1. A…
Four men draw a pension worth more than a quarter million dollars a year, and none of them filled out a job application. Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden all collect it for the same reason: They used to be president. Their pension is only the start. These are the perks…
Who causes the trouble in Florida each winter, snowbirds or the locals grumbling about them? Ask each side, and you’ll hear the same answer with the names switched. The truth splits down the middle. These are the habits that cause friction between Floridians and snowbirds, from both directions. Snowbird Habits That Irk Locals We’ll cover…
Publix runs on rules nobody posts on the front door. Floridians learn them young. A first-timer from New Jersey learns them the hard way, one green-aproned surprise at a time. 1. BOGO Means Buying Both BOGO deals stop every northern newcomer. At Publix stores in Florida, “buy one get one free” means exactly that: You…
Georgia teenagers in the 1970s earned their gas money in ways that sound half-invented now. They hauled milk crates, cropped tobacco, and balanced trays on car windows. Every one of those paychecks came from work that has since disappeared. These are the summer jobs Georgia teens had in the ’70s that don’t exist anymore. 1….
Texans will argue about barbecue, breakfast tacos, and which Buc-ee’s has the cleanest bathrooms. But when a road trip hits hour three, the argument usually ends at the same rocking-chair porch. These are the Cracker Barrel menu picks Texans order again and again. 1. Chicken n’ Dumplins Cracker Barrel says it sells more than 11…
Every June, the questions from up north start again. Are there alligators in your pool? How do you stand the heat? Floridians answer patiently the first time and less patiently the tenth. These are the summer myths they’re tired of explaining. 1. Alligators Stay in the Water Florida holds about 1.3 million alligators, and they…
Every Floridian has a second job they never applied for: Answering the same tourist questions on repeat. The questions arrive with the rental cars each summer, and they don’t let up until the last minivan heads north in August. These are the things Floridians are tired of hearing from tourists. Is Disney Close to Miami?…
New Yorkers spend half their lives explaining themselves to the rest of the country. The other half, they spend not being sorry at all. From Buffalo to Montauk, the apologies have officially stopped. These are the things New Yorkers are tired of apologizing for. 1. Getting to the Point Outsiders call it rude. New Yorkers…
A blinker comes on, and the Buick it belongs to settles in to wait for a front-row parking spot. Floridians know the routine by heart. They’ve watched it every winter of their lives, and they’ll tell you the show starts in the parking lot, not the store. These are the habits that give snowbirds away…
