Letter From the Editor: Stunning Revelations
The zen of cold-stunned iguanas.
How I crave the lifestyle of the cold-stunned iguana.
The suburban reptiles gained a measure of fame recently during our state’s early-January cold snap when they literally chilled out and fell from trees, landing in yards or beside pools and lying on their backs for hours. All because, Florida wildlife officials report, iguanas become immobilized or sluggish when temperatures drop too low. Concerned residents rushed to move many of them into the warmth of the sun, and most of the creatures soon snapped out of their funk.
Can we please get this sort of mindset going in the workplace?
You come into work on a Monday morning, you’ve got 200 emails, chores are piled up on the desk or online, and the boss wants a meeting pronto. Immobilized and sluggish, you topple out of your chair around 10 a.m. and just lie on the floor—work stunned—for a few hours, not hearing the inquiries of colleagues. The only restorative remedy is rapid transport to a sunny deck chair poolside at a local resort, where you are given a cocktail and fed iguana-friendly dandelion greens.
Something tells me that the restorative part isn’t going to happen. Because I am chronically immobilized and sluggish, perhaps I should find other solutions for my problem. Riding a bicycle might help. This month in our cover story, Dan Tracy looks at the state of bicycling in Orlando and explores whether cyclists and cars can share the road in harmony. I used to have a bike, but one day it fell off the rack as I traveled the 408, bouncing along in my rear view mirror as cars swerved to miss it. So much for sharing the road.
Maybe an endless supply of tacos would help. This month, Joseph Hayes reveals 11 great places to get the Mexican staple in the Orlando area. Leading off the piece: the great Hunger Street eatery. Our dining critic also looks at another local gem, Nonno’s Italian restaurant in Altamonte Springs.
Elsewhere, we catch up with retired Channel 9 anchor Bob Opsahl, who is definitely not work stunned. The local TV legend talks about how he misses the old job, though. And finally, Los Angeles writer J. Charlotte Jarrett, who grew up in Orlando, pens a heartfelt love letter to the city of her youth.
Speaking of love, it’s that time of year, and if you’re still seeking the perfect gift for your special someone, consider the Mason jar option. I wrote about this a few years ago and here’s the scoop once again: Take 52 slips of paper and write a love note on each, with one to be opened each week for the next year. You can even categorize and color-code them—yellow for “moments & memories,’’ red for “reasons I love you,’’ for example. Put them in a Mason jar, present on Valentine’s Day and watch your special someone’s face light up.
Of course you also could choose to write out 365 slips of paper. But that much effort in such a short amount of time might leave you work stunned.
