Well uhuh baby I aint got no plan...

"you don't know where and you don't know when, but you still got your words and you got your friends. walk along to, another day, work a little harder, work another way." - Modest Mouse "The World At Large"

Florida has been a roller-coaster. And not like one of the really fun roller-coasters at one of the many theme parks here (none of which we could ever dream of affording). Rather, a roller-coaster of both plans and emotions, one usually following the other.

For starters, we did not realize how expensive Florida would be. We read all about how amazing the state park system is and were excited to check out a few of the parks - but immediately realized we would have to wait for the next time we visited Florida, when we were "feeling richer" as we like to put it. To put a tent up on a square patch of land in a state park can range anywhere from $16-$36. Absolutely painful. Two and a half weeks of that pain would surely break our bank and we would have to pack up and find a place to settle down and submit to wage-slavery for awhile.

Instead, I cried. Not for very long, of course, but a good bit of time. A big, long cry of frustration. To not know where you're going to sleep at 4:30 in afternoon as the sun's descent is picking up speed is just awful. To know that you can't afford to pay the exorbitant fees anyone would charge you to try to sleep somewhere is just as equally, if not more awful.

So after being saved for an evening by a friend from Bryn Mawr (thank you, Sara!) we were able to discover Florida's wonderful little secret: Water management districts. Florida is way ahead of most of America in preparing itself for water-sustainability. The state is broken up into five separate districts, and judging by their five separate websites they appear to each act of their own accord. The majority of these districts, in addition to managing water resources and wildlife, also provide public access to the lands for recreation and learning.

The preservation and conservation of land is definitely a concept that deserves further inquiry, but for now we’ll just say it’s both wonderful and problematic. As for the water management districts, they saved our budget on four separate occasions, giving us beautiful, serene campgrounds, that despite the cold, let us savor what this trip is really about.

After seeing a post on facebook describing our Florida woes (pre-WMDs, the good kind), my Aunt Shelly and Uncle Brad who live in Kissimmee got a hold of us and extended a warm invitation to stay in their home as the cold spell settled down throughout the state. After a toasty evening by a fire, we awoke on Monday to a balmy 28 degrees, packed up camp and headed toward warmth of the heated-shelter and family variety. And it has been absolutely great – cooking and relaxing with family, movies and the hot tub. We’re heading from here to Chattanooga to be with Caitlin’s family for Christmas, and then down to New Orleans for New Years where we’ll be meeting some Philly friends!