Story Archive

Empty Nest Syndrome

“We are a nautical family,” says Tara Myers, a native of Florida. “We spend time on the water all the time.” But when she and her son floated out onto the Gulf of Mexico from Anna Maria Island, she realized after awhile that the giant inflatable swan she and her 7-year-old were riding on had drifted “several” miles offshore. “Land just kept getting farther and farther and farther away,” she said, and was getting further out even though she got in the water and tried to swim the swan back to shore. She wasn’t sure what she was going to do, but someone who saw them drift away called 911, and just when she was beginning to fully panic, she saw a Fire Rescue boat heading her way. “I literally just laid down on that swan float and cried.” Once back on shore, she used her son’s shark-tooth necklace to pop the swan, and a firefighter “threw it in a dumpster.” (RC/WFLA Tampa) ...As long as she didn’t name her son Polydeuces, we’re good.