May 14: Inside or Outside?

In South Florida, that's the summer question. I heard it for the first time during this new summery season just yesterday. I'd gone to Starbucks on Las Olas late in the afternoon for a lovely iced green tea lemonade. Ever had one, by the way? Quite tasty and refreshing. I recommend them. Anyway I was sitting there sipping my drink beside the Samba Room, which is a terrific restaurant and bar directly next door. I watched as a family arrived for what was apparently an early dinner - and that was when I heard it. The question. A young man looked at the group and asked, "Inside or outside?" Meaning, of course, "Shall we sit inside in the air conditioning or outside in the fresh air?"

People around these parts can become quite passionate about their answer. If you hear a quick, clipped reply from someone, you know they mean business. It's usually just one word, "Inside!" Or maybe it's "Outside!" And it is generally spoken with real conviction. When my former wife said "Inside!" in this way, her reply conveyed a clear message to me: "If you think I'm sitting outdoors after just paying for a new hair permanent, you're crazy." I knew better than to argue.

Though I often wanted to. Maybe that's why we're no longer married. With rare exceptions, I tend to be an outside kind of guy. Give me alfresco dining or drinking any day. I rarely mind the heat or humidity. I mean, hey, this is Florida in the summer. That's why I gravitate toward waterside restaurants from now through September or so. There's normally a pleasant breeze coming off the ocean or Intracoastal, river or canal. Outside dining at these places is a pleasure to me. It's a margarita on the rocks and a rumbling motorboat and conch chowder with Tabasco and palm fronds silhouetted by the moon, all of it combined into some warm, tropical sensory mixture. But as I suggested, the AC is always cranked on high this time of year for those who feel otherwise. Inside, it's perpetually cool and pleasant, a controlled climate for the many folks wanting their summertime heat in shorter doses. As for me, well, I live and work in air conditioning much of the time. Any chance to escape into the outdoors is welcome. And remember, I'm single now - which means I can answer "Outside!" with all the passion I want these days.