Where I Live

This is the state of Florida. As you can see, it strongly resembles a large, flaccid... wait a minute, this is a "family" friendly blog. The big hole in the lower half is called "Lake Okeechobee". The lake's name was taken from two Hitchiti Indian words "Oka" for water and "Chobi" for big or large. Not exactly colorful, though it is descriptive. It is a very shallow lake considering its size, averaging only 9 feet. It is the source of water for all the farming to the south, east, and west of it.

If you find the northernmost point of the lake and look northwest, you will see another somewhat smaller lake. This is Lake Istokpoga, another large shallow lake (this one averages 4-6 feet and only 9-10 foot at the deepest). "Istokpoga" is Seminole for "our people died there", a more colorful name. Both it and Lake Okeechobee are fishing destinations for people from all over. Since I don't fish, that means little to me. People around here look at me oddly when I reveal that.

Continue in that WNW direction from the north tip of that lake and you can see a small red dot. Ok, you will have to click on the Florida picture to see a large enough image before you will find it.

That, my friends, is where I live. An odd fact: It is the farthest inland from any ocean I have ever lived. All my life, I have lived within 30 miles of the ocean (either Atlantic or Pacific) except for an 11 month stay in Orlando when I was just within 50 miles "as the crow flies." Sebring is at least 65 miles from any salt water. Measuring by that same weird crow travel method.


The lake you see in the picture above is called Lake Jackson. It is considered two lakes; Lake Jackson and Little Lake Jackson. Little Lake Jackson is actually a small cove attached to Lake Jackson on the south. They are separated by US Highway 27, a once major artery to the north. I live just to the southwest of Little Lake Jackson. Behind a golf course.

Golf is one of the more important recreational activities in Sebring and surrounding communities. We have a lot of golf courses and that is one of the main reasons I chose the area to retire in. Fishing is probably the most important activity here, though (which is why I get those odd looks I mentioned). As I wrote once before, it is mostly a retirement area. People come here to escape the harsher winters of the northern states and Canada each winter and an awful lot of them eventually come to live here year round. Not all of them, mind you, because it is hot and muggy in the summer.

The Neocounter over on the right gives me some idea where my readers live but I know it is less than precise since it (and others like it) show me originating from places nearby and, sometimes, not so nearby. So I would like to know... if you don't mind... Where do you live?

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