The Storm of the Century – Part 3 October 7, 2009

Water never got inside of my house, which was a true blessing. With my family all gathered together under one roof, we had cake and I opened some of my present. I remember my Uncle Robert sent me legos, so my brother and I were able to play with my new toy inside.

My dad was at work when the tide started rolling in, and when he came home, he brought pizza with him. We lit a fire because it was so cold.  Everyone was gathered in the living room. My brother played with his Lincoln Logs.

The water gradually evaporated, so my cousins, brother, and I had swampy yards to play in for a couple of days.

Eventually everything returned back to normal, and I had a make-up birthday party at McDonald’s. Still, I will never forget the day of my fifth birthday–ever.

The Storm of the Century – Part 2 October 7, 2009

The tide continued to rise. My mom went into crisis management mode. She had my old brother swim into our back yard to salvage some fire wood (the electricity had gone out, and it was expected to be a cold evening). All of the hot dogs and hamburgers, which were intended for my party guests, were sent to the Baptist church down the road. We sent a boat (yes a boat) across the street to pick-up family members who lived in my neighborhood. The first trip brought my grandmother, my aunt (who was a teenager at the time), and my aunt’s friend who had spent the night. I watched as they steered the boat through my front yard, hitting a great oak tree in the process. The boat driver dropped everyone off at my front porch, and then went to get my great-grandmother.

I love my great-grandmother, but she was a stubborn woman. Even though there was water in her house, she was admittedly opposed to getting into the boat which would take her to higher ground (my house). Although she lived her whole life in Florida, she never learned how to swim and was deathly afraid of the water. He was eventually able to get her into the boat, Lord knows how. So she was able to join the rest of the family at my house.

My grandfather has many, many hunting dogs that he keeps fenced in down the road. One of the dogs had given birth to a litter of puppies not long before the storm. By the time he got to the Dog Pin (what we call the fenced in area), all but one of the puppies had died. My grandfather brought the lone survivor to my house. We named him Stormy, and he grew-up to be the best hunting dog ever.

The Storm of the Century – Part 1 October 7, 2009

“In the early morning hours of Saturday, March 13, 1993, the ‘Storm of the Century’ hit Florida’s West Coast with awesome fury. Hurricane-strength winds and a tidal surge as high as 12 feet in some places swamped houses, smashed cars, scooped up furniture, appliances and boats.” - The St. Petersburg Times

The article refers to the No-Name Storm, and the date of March 13th, 1993 was the day of my 5th Birthday.

I woke up early that morning and put on my party dress. It was a teal cowgirl dress with lots of fringe. I wanted to wear a cowgirl dress because there was going to be a pony at my birthday, and I wanted to look the part.

My mom had me step out on the front porch with her. I saw that our front yard was completely flooded. Water came all the way up to the bottom step of our house (my house is build-up high on a hill, so for water to be on the bottom set meant that the water was a few feet deep on the road). My mom told me that the pony could not come to our house today, and that we would have my party on another day. Happy Birthday to me…

Real Mermaids – Part 3 October 7, 2009

When we exited the theatre, there was a mermaid sitting on a rock. You could ask to take pictures with her.  I liked her pink tail best of all.

At the park, we went on a boat ride, looked at all kinds of exotic animals, and then we had lunch followed by cake and presents. All throughout the park there where signs that read “Happy Birthday Caitlin,” which was very exciting. I distinctly remember my birthday crown, which had a spot to place a sticker of your age.

One of my favorite gifts that I recieved that year were my “Beauty and the Beast” Barbie dolls. The Beast was actually a prince doll with a Beast costume you could make him wear, and Belle came with both her blue dress and gold ball gown. I loved those dolls like Andy loved Woody and Buzz.

All and all, it was a very memorable day. Years later, during the Christmas before my eighteenth birthday, in my stocking, Santa stuck a job application to be a Weeki Wachee mermaid. I guess he must have remembered when I wanted to be a mermaid professionally.

Real Mermaids – Part 2 October 7, 2009

At the park, the first thing I wanted to do was watch the Mermaid Show.  It was magical…or at least it was to a four-year-old girl.  We sat in a theatre, and where there should have been a stage, there was a viewing glass instead. On the opposite side of the glass were giant rocks, fishes, plants, and anything else you would expect to see in a natural Florida spring. The show began, and mermaids appeared. The women danced under the water so gracefully. They had long wands that they would breathe though.

The storyline followed the plot of “The Little Mermaid” pretty closely. A little mermaid longed to live above lands, saves a human prince, and asks a sea witch to give her legs. The prince and the little mermaid did some acting outside of the water, inside of the theatre. It is  in front of the glass, where they have to battle the sea witch. Everyone lived happily ever after.

I knew, when I grew-up, I was going to be a mermaid…a real mermaid.

Real Mermaids – Part 1 October 7, 2009

When I was a little girl, people would asked me what I wanted to be when I grew-up, and I said, “A Mermaid.” Here is why…

At Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, there is a live underwater mermaid show that has delighted visitors since 1947. Even Elvis wanted to witness the mermaid magic at Weeki Wachee when he went to see the mermaids perform while he was in Florida filming a movie.  I had my fourth birthday party at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park.

It was a cold March day, and I wanted to where my Disney “The Little Mermaid” outfit. My mom said it was too cold to wear a cotton skirt, but I refused to wear anything else, so she had me put on tights to kept my legs warm. My family loaded into our red SUV and we were off to the park. As we pulled up, I saw my name on the big marquee out front. “Happy Birthday Caitlin.” I knew it was going to be a great birthday.

Snoopy and Shark – Part 2 October 7, 2009

With my new toy fishing pole on board, my father, brother, mother, and I  all set off to have a great family outing. We loaded our boat onto the Homosassa River Boat Ramp, and then made our way out to the Gulf of Mexico.  

We dropped anchor somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico. There wasn’t another boat insight. My dad baited my hook, and showed me how to cast a fishing pole. Then I waited. And waited. And waited.

Finally, I felt a tug and saw that little orange ball go under the water. I began to reel the line in vigorously. I knew I must have caught a big one. My father watched me closely. At one point he had to help me reel-in my catch. He began pulling up the line, hand over fist. When the fish was finally out of the water, we saw that it wasn’t a fish at all, but a small (3-4ft) shark.

Needless to say, my dad cut the line and I watched my first catch swim away. However, my dad never doubted my choice of fishing poles again.

Snoopy and Shark – Part 1 October 7, 2009

I am a Florida Girl though and though. Prior to college, I never lived more than 500 ft from a river. I love boating, swimming, fishing, and pretty much any activity that involves being near or in a large body of water. One of my earliest memories is my first fishing trip with my family…

Before my dad could teach me the fine sport of fishing, I had to get a fishing pole. We went to Skidmore’s Sports Supply. I looked at all the fishing poles that were “kid size” and, being the girly girl that I was, I picked out the cutest one…a Snoopy Fishing Pole.

My dad hated my choice. You see, my father is a sensible man, and he didn’t like the idea of paying so much money for a cheap little toy. He kept say, “Caitlin, I can get you a really nice pole for the same price.”

But I was stubborn, “No Daddy, I want this one.”  Needless to say, we walked out of Skidmore’s with a brand new Snoopy Pole and a bunch of live bait. I was all ready to set sail on a new adventure.