The Cruelest Month

Be at peace... this isn't a picture of a beach in Florida, although with temperatures below freezing at night and barely creeping above fifty by day, we could very well wake up one morning to find a scene like this.

Notice the brave beachgoer in a parka and the dog frolicking in the background? We're not doing this in my Beloved Florida. No, Sir. First, we have no parkas, excepting of course for those transplants from Up North. Second, my Evil County Government has banned all animals from the beach, so no dogs may frolic here.

There is a long list of things and activities that are banned here on the Most Famous Beach, and a multi-million dollar police force ready to seize upon violators to ticket them or arrest them as the mood strikes said police force. Unfortunately, no one has yet figured out how to ban cold fronts and ticket them or arrest them for invading our beach. Most unfortunate.

January is the cruelest month in Florida, but look at Ipanema Beach in Rio de Janeiro in January:

Winter Beach Image: Richard Slessor 
Ipanema Beach Image