I'd respond to the OP, but for some reason I'm just not that motivated.
But - on second thoughts in sequence with the OP's post:
1) Lizards rule. They are the coolest little guys and are welcome to hang out everywhere. Small poops acceptable.
2) There are bugs everywhere, of every kind. Hell, it's the tropics dude!
3) We don't keep our homes sealed up - air is life, and we get great breezes most of the time.
4) Electric bills are high - conserve as best you can. Oh, but your heating bill will be nothing!
5) Electrical outages are part of life down here. Yes the infrastructure needs work, and if you are that concerned about missing your favorite sitcom then make sure you have a generator. I'll be sitting on the deck, hanging out with my lizard buddies.
6) Even though we love to give WAPA a hard time (what's blue & yellow and sleeps 4?) there are some dedicated and communicative employees. They make repairs timely when possible and will answer the phone sometimes.
7) There are rude and obnoxious people all over the world - here is no exception. And yes taxi drivers like to make a living, albeit a fairly good one based on the fares we get charged. Yet, I've found more of a sense of community living here than most any place back on the mainland. I think the concern around rudeness may be more relevant to STT than here on STX. Be pleasant and people will respond.
8) You won't necessarily get poor service at banks and utilities - you are more likely to get slow service. Pace is different so get used to spending time waiting in lines. Every encounter is treated more as a social engagement than a simple transaction. This is why a proper good morning/afternoon is always required. If you don't want to be polite - you better learn, or get used to poor service.
9) There is no such thing as a 'Normal' person on STX so don't go looking for one. We all need to be a little off-center to enjoy life here.
10) If your referring to the 5 stages of the Kubler-Ross model (although that would require some intelligence on my part to discern, and, according to some, we are all lacking in that regard) the first stage is Denial - which I think is a river in Egypt and therefore totally irrelevant. Anger is next, and this is not the place for it, I'd suggest skipping that stage too. Bargaining - now here we have a winner! This is how we manage to balance the pros and cons of island life - by bargaining that it's better to be here, warm, and for the most part happy, even though we have to deal with the many trials and tribulations. Stage 4 would be Depression. That usually affects those who are trying to hard to 'make change' too quickly, and have hit too many of the roadblocks at once. This is real and results in people either leaving for good, or just taking a trip to get off the rock for a while. Lastly, Acceptance - Hmm, I think this one takes many many years. I'll let you know.
11) I don't think any of us really go to the beach as much as we would like. We have jobs, volunteer work, social engagements, and all those pesky bugs to take care off. The important thing is that the beach is there, like a good friend, waiting for you to stop by any time and just dig your toes into the sand and waves, and smile.
12) Personally, every time I see a plane load of folks jetting off over the horizon back to the mainland, I can help thinking "you poor buggers" having to go back to the over consuming hectic society where you don't even know your neighbours, and it's cold too!
Of course this is just my opinion, I could be wrong!
