Many of our "snowbird" neighbors in Florida are Canadian. With the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic to North America many of us were waiting, watching, and wondering if we were safer there or "back home" in our northern states or Canada. I, like many, did not want to leave the warmth and enjoyment that we have in wintertime Florida. There were still many activities planned at the clubhouse that everyone likes to participate in. The days were getting warmer, and the pool invited us all with the promise of its comfortable relaxation. We were making regular trips to a mangrove beach on Tampa Bay, where we could enjoy the warm bay water, Mindy lounging in the sun and me reading a book in the shade of a mangrove tree while sipping on iced tea and eating sushi from our local Publix store. Life, as we were living it, was quite relaxing to say the least!
Now, the opossum is a very interesting and somewhat misunderstood animal. The predominant "possum" in North America is the Virginia Opossum, which ranges east of the Rocky Mountains from southern Canada to northern Costa Rica. Possums play a vital role in our ecosystem as they eat a variety of yucky things, such as rats, mice, slugs, cockroaches, ticks, carrion, rotted fruit, and human garbage. I suppose you could call them the garbage truck of the animal kingdom! They are the only marsupial found in North America, with the female giving birth after a very short gestation period and carrying the babies in her pouch, each one having attached itself to one of her 13 teats until mature enough to leave the pouch.
Possums are known to have an amazing immune system, do not get rabies, aren't bothered by poisons that would kill most other animals, and are immune to snake venom. About the size of a house cat, the possum has very little to defend himself with, except his appearance. With 50 razor-sharp teeth, a possum with mouth wide open, hissing, drooling, and blowing snot bubbles out of his nose is an imposing sight to some smaller predators.
To protect itself against larger, more aggressive predators, the possum will actually fake his own death. He hunkers down, opens his mouth, sticks out his tongue, and goes into a mild coma. He also releases a noxious green fluid from glands located around his anus. No self-respecting carnivore would ever eat something that grotesque and stinky! The action that we call "playing possum" is an involuntary process that evolved to protect the possum from becoming someone's lunch.
People sometimes "play possum" too, when they are faced with a crisis or situation that frightens them and don't know what to do. Thankfully, we don't actually lay down, stick out our tongue, and stink to high heaven. But we do stop whatever is going on and involuntarily do nothing until we figure out what it is that we need to do.
And so it was in beautiful, relaxing Boca Ciega Village on Walsingham Road in Pinellas County, Florida. As the news advanced about the growing number of infected people in the US, we went about our daily activities and lives with the attitude (as stated by one resident) "We've got our own little bubble here. We're safe."
Then our President declared a state of emergency. We needed to stop playing possum!
The Canadian government asked all citizens to return to Canada as soon as possible. The Canadians' private health insurance plans (that cover the difference in cost between US and Canadian health care) were advising them that their policies would be cancelled if they did not return immediately! Within a matter of just a few days our neighbors from the north were gone! Those with cars left as soon as they could pack their bags. Those who were flying made immediate reservations and prayed their flights would not be cancelled ... some were delayed for days. Refrigerators were emptied, and groceries donated to those who hadn't left yet. (Glad we could help!)
Spring break arrived, as it does every year in Florida, with massive numbers of college-aged kids whose still-maturing brains could not understand the concept of social distancing and staying away from Florida this year. Beaches and restaurants were closed as a result of their lack of appreciation for the situation at hand. Closing as well was our beloved mangrove beach, and eventually the county closed our community swimming pool at Boca Ciega.
Many American residents started making plans to leave early as well. Our park has about 25 (out of 138) year-round residencies, with the remainder being seasonal. We were down to a little over 50 remaining two days before we left. We packed our things and studied the weather forecasts. We targeted our exit date. We said "goodbye" to paradise.
While reading the news, we learned that New Jersey and the NYC Metro area were real hotpots for COVID-19. Our usual, shortest, and fastest route goes straight up the New Jersey Turnpike to New York City. Years of trips back and forth conducted with my anal retentive behavior patterns reminded me that we cannot make it through NJ without stopping for coffee, restrooms, and gasoline. No how, no way!
So, this year, we decided to avoid NJ by turning north just before Washington, DC, and taking I-81 north into Pennsylvania. This would allow us to then turn east on I-84 well north of NYC, scoot safely into CT, MA,VT and finally arrive in NH.
Our plans were set ... the van was loaded. A final restful night's sleep in Florida and we were on our way at 4:30 in the morning. Dark. No traffic. Northward bound!
Stay tuned for Part two of our exciting travel adventure!
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