How I got here...

I moved to Florida just a little over four years ago.  It was one of the biggest, most spontaneous manuevers I had ever made. I thank my daughter for planting the idea.  It was right around Memorial Day of 2007.  She had just graduated from Pitt and I was helping her get settled in her new apartment in Dallas, Texas.  We were celebrating the beginning of her new life after college when she brought up the idea of moving. 

"Dad, I've heard stories that you wanted to move to Florida years ago, before you started working in the mill, met Mom, got married and had kids".  "Yea Sweetheart, that's true, at 20 years old, I and a friend had made plans.  We had $100.00 in our pockets between us and I had a beat up old Volkswagon, and we were on our way to Ft Lauderdale.  When I told Grandma, she flipped out, and she and Grandpa sat me down and talked, what they thought, was some "sense" into me, and convinced me to start working in the mill instead, to make some money before I started on such an adventure, and the rest is history"

"Well Dad, Joey and I are both out of school, you and Mom are divorced, and you and Sylvia both love the beach, so why not move now?"  Bells rang, lights flashed, and the realization hit me that she was right.  Being a bartender I could easily find a job anywhere, and I certainly was not looking forward at all to returning to driving the school bus the following September, so I started an online search for places to live in Florida.

I got on www.findyourspot.com and filled out their questionnaire.  Melbourne, Florida on the east coast just below Cape Canaveral was at the top of the list of my "best spots".  I visited there the week of July 4th.  The only thing I really liked about Melbourne was the Carrabba's Italian Grill next to the hotel.  I had never been to one of their restaurants before, but was hooked.  I ate my dinner there every night of that visit.

Other than that, I was not impressed with the east coast at all.  Although I was intrigued by the changes being made at Patrick Air Force Bases base housing.  This huge housing area was right on the west side of A1A, right across the highway was beach access, and they were converting this housing from strictly service personnel into duplexes that could be rented or bought by the public.  I toured a few of them and actually got on the list to rent one if I decided to move to Melbourne.  At the time, a two bedroom duplex with garage was going for $700.00 a month, a real bargain compared to other rentals that I looked at around the area.

But big hotels and condos lined the whole eastern side of A1A, and stores, shopping centers and bars lined most of the west side.  It was much too commercial and busy for my tastes.  I was looking for something more laid back, and Melbourne, although certainly no Miami Beach, or Ft. Lauderdale, was still too hectic. 

Back home I went and continued the online search.  Bradenton and further south, Port Charlotte, Florida showed up in the top ten of my best places.  I was not at all in a hurry to fly back to Florida at this point, so I kept looking online at rentals up and down the area between the two towns.  I happened upon a house for rent at www.homeandcondo.com, a website for a rental agency in Venice, Florida, a little further south than the midpoint between Bradenton and Port Charlotte. 

I was excited the minute I saw the house and took a mapquest and google earth look at the area.  A reasonably priced two bedroom house with a garage, gotta have the garage for my motorcycle, only 3/4 mile from Venice Beach on the Gulf of Mexico, now THIS was something I had to take a closer look at.

I booked my flight to Tampa that day, and was on my way to Florida again at the beginning of August.  I drove from Tampa to Venice, and once getting off of 95, I could see the the Gulf Coast was different, less busy, more laid back.  It was more the type of Florida living that I was looking for. 

I crossed the Venice Avenue Bridge onto "the island" and almost immediately I felt like I was home!  I can't explain the excitement I was feeling, shops, restaurants, and parks lined both sides of the street.  It was like driving through Beaver, Pa, only with palm tree lined streets instead of Maples and Oaks.  I immediately drove to the house, less than a mile from this main street, and it was just perfect!  From there I drove to the beach, less than 3/4 mile from the house, and I knew without doubt that this was where I wanted to move. 

The Home and Condo office is right across the street from the beach.  I went in, talked to the rental manager, told her I wanted to rent the house at 336 Pensacola Road and would be back on September 1st to take occupancy.  I signed the lease, paid first and last months rent and a security deposit, and left that office with a sense of excitement that was just unbelievable.

That's just about the whole story of how I ended up in Venice.  I flew back home, packed my apartment into a U-Pack truck, drove my truck to D.C. and took it to Florida on the AutoTrain, flew back to Pa.  Rode my Harley to D.C. and got it to Florida the same way.  A week later, after I must say, more than a few lonely, even scary nights, sitting alone in a completely empty house, wondering if I was doing the right thing, the trailer arrived with my stuff.  By the following week I was all moved in and ready to really start this new adventure....

...to be continued!!!