Full time in WaterColor

[melscuba]

The biggest adjustment you will have to make is living in a resort area, if you have never done it before. It's very different than living in a small town, suburb, urban area, or in the country. Depending on your situation now, you may have to adjust to different commutes to "necessities" like the doctor, vet, school or shopping. We have everything you need, of course, but if you have special needs, like a specialized doctor or surgeon, you might have to drive a little farther to get to one.

I think everyone who lives here now is used to the cycle of the tourist season, but it takes some getting used to - for instance, we are in a down time right now between spring break and summer but the weather is warm, so we are seeing a lot of weekenders. It's the time of year when you might want to dine out on a Wednesday instead of a Saturday, and get your grocery shopping done before the weekend. In the dead of summer, you eat out less, or only at certain places. In the winter, you go to restaurants constantly, because they have winter specials and it's so nice to go when it's not crowded.

It's not bad, it's just different. Just like in the suburbs, you know you have to wait until 7:00 to go out to eat or you will still be stuck in the "going home from work" traffic, or you can count on a faster commute in the summer when the kids are out of school, and that if it's raining on a Friday afternoon in Atlanta, everyone will forget how to drive and your trip home will take twice as long.

So it sounds like you've made the jump from the Atlanta area to South Walton. Thank you for your insight.

 

[Here4Good]

So it sounds like you've made the jump from the Atlanta area to South Walton. Thank you for your insight.

We are legion, us ex-Atlantans.

 

[rehunter]

The biggest adjustment you will have to make is living in a resort area, if you have never done it before.

Here4good, have you moved full time to another resort area before?? If so can you comment on your experiences between the two. That's pretty cool stuff.

 

[scooterbug44]

It's basically learning the stuff mentioned - you learn the standard "busy" vacation times, when to go to the grocery, get used to a lot of people w/ out of state plates not knowing how to drive or find things, and have homes nearby rented out.

Living in Watercolor is the same as living on most of 30-A in those respects, which is the same as living in many tourist destinations.

 

[Here4Good]

The biggest adjustment you will have to make is living in a resort area, if you have never done it before.

Here4good, have you moved full time to another resort area before?? If so can you comment on your experiences between the two. That's pretty cool stuff.

Yes, this is the second time we've done this. We lived on Pensacola Beach about 20 years ago, for about 4 years. It was very different than Sowal, in that you are on an island, and you have to cross a bridge (that all of the tourists are using to get to and from their condos) if you want to go to the store, etc.

Sowal is MUCH easier to get around, even on the 4th of July - there are multiple "escapes" to 98, and this section of 98 NEVER gets bogged down. I know people complain about the traffic here, but it doesn't compare to sitting at a dead stop while 1,000 visitors ahead of you pay their toll and get onto the island! Here, I was even able to do an end-around to get to the pharmacy at Sandestin during the madness of the Dennis evacuation.

On the island, you were truly surrounded by tourists - they would walk by the townhouse, and look in your windows like you were an animal in a zoo! In the busy season, you were trapped in the neighborhood - we didn't care, because we'd get our refrigerator filled and park the car until Monday (and you can ALWAYS find a beer store within biking distance) . In the winter, they took down the traffic light and didn't put it back up until March.

On the other hand, Pensacola is a pretty big town and was only like 6 miles away, so you had more access to things like specialty repair shops, doctors, etc.

You have to look at the entire picture - what your needs are, and whether or not you will be able to live your entire life in this place - not just your beachgoing life.

There is one advantage to living in a resort area- you can always tell your relatives to come and visit you, since you live in such a nice place, and that cuts down on your trips to those places you would only ever visit to see family!

 

[Kurt]

We're wondering exactly the same thing - we're considering what you are w/ 3 young children under 6, we're trying to figure out the balance between realism and fantasy, and we're of course worried that Watercolor or Seagrove etc. is too much fantasy and will essentially screw our kids up or not.. (OK screw them up more than we're already doing by worrying about them so much)
Wouldn't it be cool if there was some kind of support group for folks who have made the move we're both contemplating - and perhaps for those who recently have done so too.

Although I admit I have never tried it, it seems to me raising a kid in a city suburb is the way to "screw one up", as you put it.

If SoWal is paradise for you, it is paradise for your kids, but even more so. Kids should be close to nature. Free to experience the rhythm and balance of life - the moon, the stars, the tide, the seasons of change for plants and animals.

This coming from someone who sees being a beach bum as a a position of honor.

I wish every kid was lucky enough to be raised here.

 

[robertsondavies]

Although I admit I have never tried it, it seems to me raising a kid in a city suburb is the way to "screw one up", as you put it.

If SoWal is paradise for you, it is paradise for your kids, but even more so. Kids should be close to nature. Free to experience the rhythm and balance of life - the moon, the stars, the tide, the seasons of change for plants and animals.

This coming from someone who sees being a beach bum as a a position of honor.

I wish every kid was lucky enough to be raised here.

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Kurt, good points. I have no reservations about the childrens exposure to the natural environment, the tides, etc. yes, suburbs can in theory screw kids up, as can inner cities, or vacation areas no?? I guess I'm overstating my question, by saying 'screwed up'... i'm just a bit concerned that SOWal is so perfect a place, that my kids may lack some intangible collection of experiences necessary to compete or endure the harshness of the world outside of the movie set. Maybe I'm the only potential refugee to South Walton that ponders that point - I guess I'll just enroll my children in day labor camps during the summer in stead of Camp Watercolor - Does St. Joe Co. offer any hard labor for children summer camps? lol

 

[scooterbug44]

While we all love Sowal, there is still more than enough "not so perfect" to go around - that's just life anywhere on the planet. No matter where you choose to live and raise your kids there are going to be alot of things they are exposed to that burst the "perfect" bubble. Divorce, bullying, child abuse, illness, self-esteem issues, stereotypes, death, and tragedy will find them wherever you live.

Kids have it rough these days - living at the beach and getting to enjoy nature is a good antidote to all the negatives they are bombarded with 24/7. They'll get plenty of harshness and reality checks, but life at the beach also gives them a respite and great memories.

 

[beachmouse]

SoWal is a more diverse place than most short term visitors realize. Get north of 98, and you can find some real pockets of poverty not too far from the million dollar houses on the south shore of Choctaw Bay.

Also once they hit high school, they're going to be wanting to go to Panama City Beach on a regular basis, which is many things but none of what I'd call perfect. :shock:

 

[SGB]

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Kurt, good points. I have no reservations about the childrens exposure to the natural environment, the tides, etc. yes, suburbs can in theory screw kids up, as can inner cities, or vacation areas no?? I guess I'm overstating my question, by saying 'screwed up'... i'm just a bit concerned that SOWal is so perfect a place, that my kids may lack some intangible collection of experiences necessary to compete or endure the harshness of the world outside of the movie set. Maybe I'm the only potential refugee to South Walton that ponders that point - I guess I'll just enroll my children in day labor camps during the summer in stead of Camp Watercolor - Does St. Joe Co. offer any hard labor for children summer camps? lol

As someone else said, it is very diverse here. The people are diverse, the areas are diverse, the experiences are diverse, the incomes are diverse. When you live here you're more aware of the non-perfect parts of living here. Just remember, that when you live here, it's different then when you vacation here. Your life will be filled with much of the same stuff it is elsewhere - Work, school, doing the laundry, paying the bills, taking care of the house, etc. Sometimes you have to remind yourself that you live in an environment that is paradise and take advantage of it.

We still try to travel to other places and experience other places and people, but we're ALWAYS glad to get back home to where it's less crowded, you see people you know at Publix every trip, the local restaurants know you by name, and you wave at people you know as they drive/bike/run by you on 30A.