Almost every day there’s yet another bizarre news story set right here in the Sunshine State. (And of course a relative from up north with a need to relegate the news via text.)
Whether it’s “Shirtless Florida man holds U.S. flag against Hurricane Matthew” or “Naked Florida man causes fire while baking cookies on George Foreman grill,” our proverbial (and beloved) Florida Man is the class clown of the U.S.
But who is Florida Man? Why are there so many absurd news stories from Florida? And most importantly, why do they always seem to involve hurricanes or reptiles?
Three reasons why the rest of the U.S. is so obsessed with us. ⤵️
☀️ Our open-government laws. We’re the only state with The Sunshine Law, allowing everything the government does to be open to the public – including police arrests + reports. Because of this, all arrest reports are made freely available to reporters.
☀️ The weather. With hot + sunny weather almost all year long, people are usually out + about, providing ample opportunity to do something deemed newsworthy.
☀️ The gigantic + diverse population. With over 21 million people (and over 126 million visitors per year) our large + varied demographic can be conducive to some strange occurrences.
If those reasons aren’t enough for you, we asked one of our favorite publicly recognized Florida men – Lane Pittman, The Hurricane Slayer – what qualifies someone to be Florida Man. And we don’t think you’ll be disappointed with his response.
“The Hurricane Slayer” | .giph via Giphy
“Florida Man is not something one aims to achieve. We just are. Florida Man lives inside those that have tasted and seen the goodness in the water that flows from the Everglades. The vapor that rises from the St. John’s River on a hot, steamy Florida afternoon. Yes, the same ones that stick their tongues out in every hurricane like we’re catching snowflakes. We’ve been raised on it. We’ve been bred to be wild, baby. So wipe that chlorine-burn from the Orlando tap water at Islands of Adventure like we own it and press onto our next adventure.”
Florida, no doubt you’re beautiful. But you’re also incredibly odd. We blame the heat. 🍊
