Bright Lights, Big City, Snow, a Fire Station and Karma! (plus a bit extra...)

My last post a couple of weeks ago touched on my feathery neighbors a few houses away. Yes, the pair of roosters and probably a few hens. Now, whenever I’m outside and I hear their sounds, I think a bit differently. The post also brought led to a few comments about how different our city is from block to block, much less zip code to zip code.

In the same thought as block to block, I headed to the big apple a few days ago (more like two weeks ago) and after we took off we headed east and I took a look outside at this crazy town we call Miami and wondered, just how many different rules there are for the myriad of blocks, streets and neighborhood. I figure there must be tons!

So anyway, back to New York City and its relation to the roosters. It’s a crazy town for sure, but as I waded through snow, ice and something called “ice-pellets”, I really missed Miami. Not because of the warmth, but because of the routine sounds…by this of course I mean…you guessed it, the roosters. Though I was staying in a pretty nice hotel, my window was about 14 stories above a fire station and though I busted on the roosters a few weeks ago, karma got me good. See, the fire station must have been blocked by traffic quite a bit, because about once an hour during the evening, I’d say until around 11:00 pm, I’d hear the sirens of a fire truck or rescue unit trying to get in or out of the station. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t about the great work the FDNY does, I have mad respect for them, it’s just that I missed my roosters. In reality the siren’s weren’t as bad as the midnight garbage and delivery trucks which seemed to make as much noise as possible! Funny what you can get used too.

Now, onto a rule I’ve just seen broken and thought it worthy of a mention here.

Over at the Coconut Grove Grapevine, they’ve been following the whole Mercy Hospital land use/rezoning/crazy tall condo project being proposed. I’m not getting into that mess. It’s too complicated and besides, no roosters allowed on that side of US1, I’m sure.

What caught my eye is a headline on the Miami Herald’s online edition, which read:
“Balloons show planned high-rises' Viscaya skyline impact”

The rule broken here? Always double check the spelling of a National Historic Landmark in your neighborhood…people are bound to notice and wonder who’s checking these things out!

Enjoy!

It’s a Small, Small…

I don’t want to finish the title of this post because large companies are on a roll lately issuing cease and desist letters to bloggers large and small. Check out what the pork people did to this one blogger and her response. Needless to say, these here blogs and our community have power.

As soon as I launched this blog, I found great support from my fellow South Floridian’s who blog. One, is The Florida Masochist. Apparently, he’s written about how different the rules are in Florida for quite a while and he’s done a great job. Don’t worry Masochist, as a former journalist, with integrity, I may add, I wouldn’t steal another’s material. Here’s a link to his post on my post…very circular kind of thing. I love it. Attribution is key and the only way to build respect. I’ll always link back to an original source if I use it.

Speaking of respect, here’s a question to those that read this humble blog.

Do your neighbors have roosters?

I moved out of the Gables in 2005 after my landlord had to sell my building because of the crazy property taxes. I wound up in 33133. Technically, it’s not in Coconut Grove, but I feel as though I live in it anyway. I’m in the Grove almost every day and love the atmosphere, the history and the people.

When I moved out, I bought a duplex near the Publix on 27th…and quickly discovered, my neighbors have roosters. Not one, but two. These poor birds have no idea what they’re programmed to do, which is namely crow when the sun comes up…or at least that’s what the cartoons always told me they do. It’s been a long time since I’ve watched good cartoons, but that’s another subject for another blog.

So, roosters anyone? This ain’t the Gables, it’s 33133 which means it’s Miami, where rules are mere suggestions.

Thoughts?

Miami, Where The Rules Are Different...

Greetings, Salutations & Welcome

Welcome to “The Rules Are Different Here…” The name of this blog is based on a 1980’s tourism slogan designed to attract visitors to Florida. If you live in Miami or South Florida, I’m sure you’ve noticed that things in this part of the world don’t always conform to established social or societal norms.

Almost three years after logging into Blogger, I’ve taken the plunge into the blogosphere. They say there are three stages in a bloggers life.
1) You lurk and read.
2) You comment on other people’s blogs.
3) You start your own blog.

So here I am.

The purpose of this blog is simple. To share ideas, start conversations and discuss what’s going on in and around Miami. No crazy political rants, though I do follow what’s going on and vote at every possible occasion. That said, I’m a pragmatist. I'm open to ideas that are practical and sustainable and think that anything that won't screw things up for us or anyone else is probably a good idea.

I’ve added links to few blogs that I have been reading, posting too and have prompted me to jump online. I give props to them for keeping me informed, enlightened and up-to-speed with what’s going on.

If you have thoughts on subjects, ideas or news, please feel free to share. All are welcome.