I have been asked if I sometimes miss living in the City of Key West which is usually the first place people want to live when they discover the keys. There is the romance of the narrow lanes, being close to the heart of the action and so forth. 
I can safely say that the only time I wished I lived in the city is when it's late at night and I have to haul my ass home from an event or a dinner or a movie and I'd rather my bed were three blocks away as opposed to 27 miles.
There is the fact that I do enjoy the commute especially as I normally do it by motorcycle or if I am lucky I get to ride my wife's Vespa 150 so commuting is generally fun for me. My wife enjoys commuting with her top down so the convertible does for her what riding does for me.
Beyond the logistics I find that living in the suburbs, up a canal a long way from the tourist frenzy of Old Town Key West, is the best place for me. Even though our modest 800 square foot stilt house has no open water views like these houses I photographed on Cudjoe Key, we have a dock on a canal and views to the west over the water and mangroves that make up most of the western edge of Ramrod Key.
Certainly open water views are beautiful against which one has to balance one's exposure to hurricane generated waves...
But the life of a canal dweller in general seems to me to be more in line with what counts most for me about life in the Keys. I like living on the water, I enjoy the utter peace and quiet of my little island, especially in summer when the snowbirds are gone and I can sit out on my deck and see no one and hear nothing all afternoon long.
There are of course other ways to enjoy waterfront living, like the cormorant drying out on a channel marker, or the sailor living on a sailboat.
The most extravagant end up on their own islands, well and truly cut off from the rest of us.
Actually that seems a bit excessive to me, needing too much logistical preparation and frankly too much effort to shuttle everything out to your island, from the plumber when needed to the spare bottle of milk or six pack of beer. To each his own I suppose, and for many of us it has to be Old Town!
I can safely say that the only time I wished I lived in the city is when it's late at night and I have to haul my ass home from an event or a dinner or a movie and I'd rather my bed were three blocks away as opposed to 27 miles.
There is the fact that I do enjoy the commute especially as I normally do it by motorcycle or if I am lucky I get to ride my wife's Vespa 150 so commuting is generally fun for me. My wife enjoys commuting with her top down so the convertible does for her what riding does for me.
Beyond the logistics I find that living in the suburbs, up a canal a long way from the tourist frenzy of Old Town Key West, is the best place for me. Even though our modest 800 square foot stilt house has no open water views like these houses I photographed on Cudjoe Key, we have a dock on a canal and views to the west over the water and mangroves that make up most of the western edge of Ramrod Key.
Certainly open water views are beautiful against which one has to balance one's exposure to hurricane generated waves...
But the life of a canal dweller in general seems to me to be more in line with what counts most for me about life in the Keys. I like living on the water, I enjoy the utter peace and quiet of my little island, especially in summer when the snowbirds are gone and I can sit out on my deck and see no one and hear nothing all afternoon long.
There are of course other ways to enjoy waterfront living, like the cormorant drying out on a channel marker, or the sailor living on a sailboat.
The most extravagant end up on their own islands, well and truly cut off from the rest of us.
Actually that seems a bit excessive to me, needing too much logistical preparation and frankly too much effort to shuttle everything out to your island, from the plumber when needed to the spare bottle of milk or six pack of beer. To each his own I suppose, and for many of us it has to be Old Town!
No comments:
Post a Comment