The season that never ended

For some, it’s a summer in paradise. Others are hoping they never have to do this again. Either way, there’s a population on Longboat Key that’s never been here in the heat of the summer before, courtesy of the coronavirus pandemic. 

As the pandemic quickly worsened in March — when seasonal residents were beginning to pack and plan to head north — many either got out quickly or decided to shelter in place. For the latter group, it’s a summer unlike any other. 

“We have very much found the silver lining.” 

For Jonathan Goldberg and Regina Skyer, a couple from London and New York City, respectively, it only made sense to stay in Florida, especially considering that they would have been in New York in the beginning, when it was the country’s hotspot. Goldberg had just returned from London the week before lockdown went into effect in March, and counts himself as lucky since he’s unsure he would’ve been able to get out if he’d stayed much longer. 

“So we’re kind of stuck here,” Goldberg said. “To our surprise, we found it very, very pleasant. We thought the heat would be unbearable but we’ve kind of got used to it, and if you’ve got to be locked down anywhere, we think this is a very good place to be locked down.” 

Goldberg and Skyer have gotten into a routine, which mostly involves staying indoors to beat the heat. They walk about three hours or so every day, covering over eight miles in their Bay Isles neighborhood. They leave at the crack of dawn to get as much of the cool weather as possible. Over Zoom, Goldberg works with a personal trainer from his living room and thinks he’ll never go back to a gym again. 

“We've never been so healthy,” Goldberg said. “By not going to restaurants, you're not eating all the rubbish that you do eat in restaurants. I just had a blood test, and I've never had such good results literally in my life before.”

Of course, it’s not the same as their winter routine, which involves many trips to Sarasota’s operas and concerts, but they’re watching good television, reading tons and discovering audiobooks. But to their surprise, this summer is making them rethink their future plans. They both still work as lawyers in their respective cities, but they’ve been able to do so remotely during the pandemic, meaning they could feasibly stay longer. 

“I would say in the future we will stay much longer,” Goldberg said. “Certainly June has been very pleasant. This has made my wife decide to be a permanent Florida resident.”

“This is our first summer in Florida and hopefully our last.” 

Steve and Linda Jackson should be in Maine right now visiting their children and grandchildren. Instead, they’re sweating it out on Longboat Key.

“I think we made the right decision although we're lonely without our family,” Steve said. “Being up there would require us to be in places that we wouldn’t know who used it before us.”

The Jacksons only own one home, on Longboat Key, but in the 25 years they’ve been here, they’ve never spent a summer in the south Florida heat. They’re sticking around now, because of the uncertainty that surrounds travel in the age of the pandemic. Maybe it could have been fun, Steve mused, if everything was open and they could go places — indoor places. 

“We play golf, typically, but it's been too hot to even go out on the courses,” Steve said. “So, we've been walking and riding our bikes when it isn't too hot. We're right across from Durante Park, which is just the most wonderful, wondrous place to walk through. I've been doing it and enjoying it each time, but it's so hot to even do that. So we're doing lots of reading. Reading and eating.”

As they partake in their big summer activity, Steve said he’s discovered the books he always thought he’d love, and Linda is imagining casting the movie yet to be made for the books she’s reading, picturing actors and actresses in various parts as characters. It’s pleasant, but they’d much rather be with their grandchildren. 

“We close off the Zoom with a feeling of not being satisfied,” Steve said. “We're able to listen to their life successes, which of course we enjoy being a part of, but we'd rather be up there with them and raising a glass to their success.”

“It’s decidedly different.” 

Normally, Karen and Duane Compton would have just celebrated Fourth of July listening to fireworks echoing off the mountains of Ouray, Colorado, where they spend their summers isolated from much of civilization.

“We decided if we went we would have had to quarantine, and we go there to socialize,” Karen said. “We’re pretty isolated in Ouray. If we got sick, where better than here? The closest hospital (in Ouray) is 35 miles away.” 

So here they stay, and like most others, they spent time indoors reading and exercising for the most part. They do, however, have a couple outdoor excursions per week to play pickleball and participate in seed packing for Hope Seeds at Christ Church of Longboat Key. 

“We’ve adapted,” Karen said. “We’re very structured and calm, there’s no engagements to worry about. It’s definitely been a creative time, and mostly good.”

Karen is taking journaling classes and diving into her intricate coloring books, while Duane is cleaning out his boxes of papers from when he was teaching. It’s a good time for projects and jigsaw puzzles, they said. 

“People think Florida is the same all year round, but we’re noticing the different flowers and trees now,” Karen said. “We’ve paid more attention and life is a lot slower. There’s time to look.”

They’re enjoying themselves, but won’t stay long next year. They’ve been getting calls from the people they’d normally see in Colorado and are eager to go back and pick up their summer traditions again, including their 40-person Fourth of July bash. 

“We didn’t do much this Fourth of July,” Duane said. “It was kind of a hard day.”

“It’s a different summer,” Karen agreed.