Everglades Sunrise

Everglades Sunrise

Oil on canvas, 10x10, $100

sold

This was my first Florida painting, and I confess, I am becoming fascinated with palm trees. Who knew there were so many different kinds?

Here are some other things I've noticed about Florida:

People do not get up early here, at least in the Keys. Restaurants don't open until 7 a.m. The laundromat doesn't open until 8.

There are no Wal-Marts the entire length of the Keys. Wow.

A waitress at a late-opening breakfast place told me that the stretch of Route 1 from the top of the Keys to the bottom is the most dangerous road in the U.S. In a day and a half, I saw two wrecks in which the car that was hit ended up on its roof.

Alligators are bigger and darker and more solidly malevolent than I'd ever imagined.

The Atlantic is a different color here. Many different colors, actually.

Key deer really ARE the size of a medium-sized dog.

Cuban coffee is so sweet it makes your teeth ache. The first taste, you think, yuck - but then you find yourself wanting a second taste - or at least I did!