Are You Afraid of Alligators?

Welcome to paradise.

I once nearly cost my girlfriend's (now wife's) dog her life because of improper supervision lakeside.  This particular chain of lakes had a 16 foot 'gator who patrolled for large game with two six to eight foot assistants - one night we heard them take down a deer.  A solid 10 on the unpleasant scale.  So I vowed to never go near a lake again.

Then our son was born.  

Turns out, our son is a real Flo Grown (Florida Grown) boy.  He loves the water, and spends his time wake boarding in lakes or Rivers in the state.  We occasionally see 'gators, have never had a problem but it's still in the back of my mind.  So this past year we have been trying to wakeboard more in the ocean (almost no 'gators ever).  At the end of the day it's the best of both worlds - like most of our state.


Sarasota Bay



      

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What's The Difference Between a Lanai and a Loggia?

Image
Welcome to Florida. Sometimes new arrivals will have a tough time with some terms that are unique to Florida and sometimes the concept of how we live will confuse folks.  On the West Coast of Florida for example, our Ocean is the Gulf of Mexico and the tides can be as infrequent as once a day.  For someone moving here from a fishing village on Cape Cod, that's a nearly impossible concept to comprehend. I was reminded about how things can be difficult for brand new residents when I was showing a midwestern couple and their Realtor around a new listing that we have.  As I gave a tour, I took time to showcase how the Loggia would be an ideal after dinner retreat with it's garden and lake view.  Then the Realtor for these very nice people asked me what a Loggia was. WHA-AAT?!?! Seriously, if you are buying a home in the state of Florida and your representative is unsure of what a Loggia is, find new representation!  I mean most people know what a Lanai is, and although the
Read more

Did John Ringling Build Dwarf Houses For The Little People That Worked For Him?

Image
Welcome to Sarasota. New residents will often not notice all that John Ringling did for our city.  I've gone to his church (built with excess circus equipment).  Had closings at the bank he founded and frequently visit the barrier islands he developed.  We all do.  But it wasn't until recently that I saw the homes he reportedly built for the little people in his employ. I always just though it was a urban legend until I sold a home across the street.   A Little House Various Video Tours   © John Gaudiano
Read more

What's Better a Lake or the Ocean?

Image
Welcome to Paradise. When I first came to Florida, I avoided lakes altogether.  I was freaked out about alligators, thought lakes were "buggy" and didn't own a pontoon boat :-D so, I focused on the ocean.  Fun.  But after our son was born EVERYTHING was back on the table, including lakes. It did take a minute to figure out that you really shouldn't compare Lakes and the Ocean, for us, one cannot replace the other.  But, both can compliment one another.  We swim or dive off docks at lakes, good times, and also wakeboard and wake skate.  Our son even took the wheels off his skateboard and has ridden that around several lakes in Florida and Georgia.  Plus we like to swim in Lagoons and Slough(s) when the mood strikes (my next post will probably be explaining what a slough is).  Also, on the way to open ocean we often wakeboard or wake surf behind our boat in the inter-coastal (I will not explain what the inter-coastal is because, I have tried and by the time I get to Bro
Read more