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Dear Publix; I realize now that I made a mistake when I begged off of visiting family this year. I failed to account for the fact that no trip to Florida to see family also means no trip to Florida to see you. Trips to Florida are more work than vacation for those born and raised in the region, but time with you makes them all worthwhile. While I am more than content and fulfilled in the romance that took me away to Texas, I regret leaving you. I’ve tried other stores to fill the Publix-shaped hole in my heart, but it doesn’t work. Target, and Trader Joe’s, and Costco, and Whole Foods are clean and pretty. Yet, they can’t hold a candle to you. I miss your chocolate chip cookies, perfectly moist and chewy with just the right number of mini-morsels (a metric fuckton). I miss your subs. No one else bakes a sub roll quite like you do. How is it that you can make a sandwich that can stand up to red wine vinegar without going soggy? You are a maker of miracles and marvels. I miss your spicy fried chicken wings. When I was feeling especially low, a family pack of wings with some veggie sticks and chunky blue cheese dressing was all I needed to make it through the night. I miss your key lime pie. Such a balance between sweet and tart, and none of that green food coloring mess. Then you go and add sliced almonds around the edge and I just melt. I love that your stores were always clean and stocked. That no matter where I was, you had what I wanted. The cute little store in Riverside that the hot firefighters liked to go – you had it. The bigass store in Mandarin – you had it. The slightly smaller store in Mandarin (a couple miles down the road) – you had it. Westside. Northside. Beaches. Didn’t matter, you had it. I love that you forgave my dalliances with other stores. Like the 24 hour Food Lion, or the Sweetbay that was closer to my apartment. You forgave me for slumming it with Winn Dixie and Walmart (America’s pink moped). More than this, you always welcomed me back after I spent the entire year in the tawdry embrace of HEB. They say “Here, Everything’s Better,” but that’s only because they’ve never been “Where shopping is a pleasure.” Their cookies are decent, but it isn’t the same. And forget subs, key lime pie, and spicy fried chicken wings (although, they have okay tamales. Have you considered tamales?). Sadly, I don’t see myself returning to Florida to live. I am Florida-born and Florida-bred, but I had to go. As much as I long to shop your aisles again, it is not enough to make me come back for good. To those who have never shopped with you, it seems silly, but know this – not a week goes by where I do not pine for your signature Kelly green and white. You may not have cause to think of me in these past four years, but I have had plenty of reasons to think about you. You have to know how much I miss you! Sincerely, Dayne