[Shipping up to Boston]

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby

I think the Villages would be improved if it was somewhere other than Florida. I imagine a Villages in Albuquerque would be amazing. Or nestled on a low plateau of the Smoky Mountains at the SC/TN border somewhere.

As for all my hates, I posted it because someone asked me directly in this thread, after I said that I enjoyed The Villages, but hated Florida. They asked what about Florida did I hate. So I answered. Perhaps people who don't like hearing answers to questions, shouldn't read publicly accessible forums on the internet. Hurts them in their feelings place, apparently.

Thanks Margaret for your understanding. It's a rare gift around these parts.

OBB....keep being you. There are many notable posters on this thread topic....when challenged, rebuffed or defeated on a point or topic....protest to the ToTV hierarchy. The Villages is a better place....having honest, transparent and thoughtful residents, like yourself, among us. Keep punching kid!

[Susan1717]

I love everything about Florida except the hurricanes. I would never consider living in any other state. My only negative on the Villages is that it is land locked so I must split my time between a beach/intercoastal community to get my water and boating fix. I hope FL never changes a thing as it’s perfect for me. I don’t even mind humidity; I’ll take it any day over a dry area like AZ.

[jimmy o]

Originally Posted by Michael 61

It’s possible to get the impression from certain posts on TOTV that some people are less than happy and content to be living in TV. Though no community is “perfect”, The Villages is a one-of-a-kind community beyond compare in my opinion. I feel so fortunate and blessed first of all to been able to have retired early in life, and secondly to be able to reside in such a beautiful and vibrant community, with mostly highly positive residents and neighbors. For me, it only take one trip outside “the bubble” to realize how special TV is.

We’re here from Chicago area. Now we’re in heaven. We find it humorous when folks here complain about crime or traffic.Tooling around in my golf cart is sooo much fun. Sure there are bad drivers here, but way worse ones in Chicago. We’re livin the dream.

[Laker14]

Originally Posted by Gpsma

People still drink the kool-aid.

Its fine here..lots to do. Place is clean and safe.

But its a Steford wives community…growing in leaps and bounds

Its becoming nothing more than a suburb of a big city

Short answer to OP: Yes, very much. Wife was uncertain at first but she loves it as much as I do now, maybe more.

Short response to those who "hate" Florida and certain aspects of Florida life, frankly, if I were King of The World (applied, but sadly was not hired for that position) there are some tweaks I'd apply, but since I'm just a lowly pawn, I accept the things I cannot change and try to keep the emotion of hatred out of my soul. A few deep breaths in the early morning air seems to help a lot in that regard.

In response to what I've enlarged in type, in above quote, I think we are becoming the city around which suburbs develop. I'm OK with that.

EDIT. last line in quote did not enlarge...but hopefully it is obvious what I was referring to...

[rjn5656]

Love it. Would never be this active if we stayed up north.

[La lamy]

Ssshhhhh it's supposed to be our secret! You know everybody outside of the bubble thinks we all have STDs?! Amazing how rumours start and stick. I for one have never had one, and like you, LOVE TV!!!

[pendi99]

Yes!

[MikeN]

Add the lack of proper medical services and you have nailed it!

[GizmoWhiskers]

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby

Income taxes don't affect me, I don't work and have no major investments.

I hate the weather, I hate the politics, I hate the overly-obnoxious "where woke goes to die" rhetoric of hatred, mistrust, misinformation, and ignorance. Yes, that ignorance exists in every state. But it isn't celebrated quite so brazenly as it is here in this state.

In Central Florida specifically, I hate that I can't find a decent pizza. I hate that fried whole belly clams are $35 and up, IF you can find a place that has them on the menu. I hate the lack of ethnic diversity. I hate that everyone gets cremated, and when you type "cemetery near me" or "graveyard near me" you get crematoriums and memorial gardens for results with the Baldwin Brothers at the top of the list. Where I come from, graveyards are chock full of American history, and are very peaceful places to just sit and reflect on life.

I hate that there aren't any town greens, which is arguably over specific, but I come from the home of the first Town Green in the country so I'm biased.

I hate that people think a 20-year-old home is "old." I hate the mentality behind that. Again - where I come from - an "old" home was built prior to 1925, and there are thousands of them in the New England area that function just fine, are well-insulated, have withstood dozens of nor'easters, and are beautiful. I hate the overdevelopment of what was once beautiful swampland. Development, I'm all for. Overdevelopment, see traffic jam #99972, Turnpike Exit Detour #49297, and sinkhole #2721.

I hate that homes sit on cement slabs, with no basements. One thing in particular, which to me is just really WEIRD: I hate that all these developments - not just The Villages - feature their garages as the most prominent visual when you are looking at houses. The garages are all out in front of the house, not behind or beside it. That is just - really really weird to me.

As a kid I grew up in CT. Spent a couple years in the PI. Moved to FL. Been here since 1987. It's fair to say now that I'm from FL. I struggle with that. I both love and hate FL.

Everything you said makes total sense to me. I get you. Your cemetery comment, right... To each their own on final resting places but for sure it baffled me not to see them back in 1987 and here in T V not to have them yeah, really a remarkable thing. Your comments chime for me.

Rolling hills, windy roads, tall trees, soft grass, no red ants so you can sit in said soft grass. Big rocks, cold cold water out of the tap. The list goes on and on but...

I know what life outside of the bubble is like. While snowbird season results in much higher need for DEFENSIVE three eyes in your head driving, I still would not want to live outside of the bubble anymore. Politically, I thank God I get to live in FL.

Socially, the fun golf carting, the endless things to do here. It is as (or sadly, with so much ridiculous growth potentially was) close to perfect as I've ever seen living in FL.

I do think that T V is getting too big and it doesn't make sense to me as a Central FL dweller all these years. 15 more years of growth... really?? $$$ in the developers generational wealth machine which is sad to me. Eventually it will result in T V just being a sprawl. You can already see the skimping on charm which is unfortunate.

[Causey]

The Villages is a unique and special place. Florida is too, love them both. The growth makes this place better, as far as I am concerned. My mother lived here when Brownwood was just starting to be built, I remember liking LSL then.
I moved here, I suppose, for most of the reasons the original poster "hates".
I was always a New England guy, biased by its beauty and history. I don't miss a thing about New England now, its changed for the worse in my opinion, and continuing in the wrong direction. Florida is still a "free state" and I hope it remains so as long as I live. New England is no longer as free as it was in my youth, IMHO.
There is great development here for sure, but drive west or north and find the rural Florida that is the "real Florida".
Not sure what you mean about traffic, been here 3 years and haven't seen any traffic, compared with a real city.
I have found great pizza here in Florida, not going to say where.
I don't look back, only looking forward, love it here.

[Ducatigator]

TV is heaven. Florida may not perfect, but no other state is. We are still working and LOVE it here. The lifestyle is very therapeutic. TV does not have traffic. It is not over crowded. It may not be the TV of 15 years ago but it still is super chill and relaxing here. Golf carting from Dabney to Spanish Springs and you see the beauty of TV and what we are truly blessed with. Just drive 45 minutes south to Orlando, 60 minutes west to Tampa or worse 3 hours to South Florida and you will see what traffic really means. You will appreciate the "niceness " of people here. Standard of living here is amazing.

For those feeling land locked. We joined the Adventure Boat Club on Lake Harris. It really is a game changer. All the lakes are beautiful. We go out once per weekend and love it. You don't even realize you are land locked. It also helps with some of the "heat" issues. Best of all, once we are done boating, drive right back to this amazing "Bubble", hop in our golf cart, ride down beautiful paths to one of the squares, have a drink and listen to some music. Seriously?? How people complain here is mind boggling to me. There is a saying I use for keeping things in perspective. "There is an a** for every seat." This may just not be the seat for some people. Good thing, this is a free country. I would move back to where you came from or try somewhere new. Life is too short to be miserable. Enjoy every day you have on this earth! That is why we chose to move here while still working. Every morning I wake up and give my thanks for the blessings we have been provided.

Hope everyone has a magical day.
Thanks
Serge

[BOWRUNNER]

Originally Posted by Michael 61

It’s possible to get the impression from certain posts on TOTV that some people are less than happy and content to be living in TV. Though no community is “perfect”, The Villages is a one-of-a-kind community beyond compare in my opinion. I feel so fortunate and blessed first of all to been able to have retired early in life, and secondly to be able to reside in such a beautiful and vibrant community, with mostly highly positive residents and neighbors. For me, it only take one trip outside “the bubble” to realize how special TV is.

Like you most of us moved here when we were young, as the years go by, and we can't do all the things we once did are prospective changes.

[opinionist]

I could have used a basement when I got a tornado alert that said, "Get to your basement now." Otherwise, I would say the basement would store junk that I no longer need. The diverse activities available in the Villages are something unique in my experience. My only complaint is the hostile treatment of tournament poker. Tournament play with a fixed entry fee and cash prizes is not "illegal gambling" and describes virtually every game in the Villages including golf.

[LeRoySmith]

Originally Posted by tophcfa

Owning, and having to take care of, multiple homes is starting to get to be a real pain in the a$$.

We've decided to become full time rather than flakes with plans to rent a few of the hot months in various northern places. We'll see how that plays out.

[LeRoySmith]

Originally Posted by rjn5656

Love it. Would never be this active if we stayed up north.

this is the biggest bonus for us, unplanned healthy lifestyle boost beats all the other great things here