The staff here at Everyday People is officially back from vacation, a much-needed nine days of freedom that began with a rollicking party at the venerable Osceola Tavern in Dade City and ended long after the clock failed to alarm one Everyday Person to consciousness before 10:37 a.m. today.
The preceding days had been well-spent, as we took a pair of female Ohioans to observe the mermaids at Weeki Wachee Springs, the wildlife and native foliage at Lettuce Lake Park in Tampa and an array of Speedo-wearing Europeans on the beach at Honeymoon Island, off Dunedin.

Although the park itself was disappointing, our group got to see a bald eagle chased through the sky by an angry hawk as we disembarked in Weeki Wachee. That was fortunate, because cool temperatures and a moderate breeze made the park’s sandy beach feel like the wind-swept banks of Lake Erie – in October. And there was the famous mermaid show, a heart-warming rendition of, you guessed it, “The Little Mermaid.” If the mermaids seemed absurdly flexible – with well-toned muscles, welcoming expressions and the lung capacity of killer whales – the staff here at Everyday People didn’t notice. Nor did we observe any water moccasins at Lettuce Lake Park, where we once spied three cottonmouths from the safety of the boardwalk. We did, however, see two baby alligators and all manner of squawking, soaring, swooping waterfowl. And for once, the observation tower was open. But, as The Rolling Stones once put it: It’s all over now. The phone has been ringing. One lady didn’t get her paper. Another lady didn’t see her granddaughter’s picture in the paper. It’s ringing again. I bet it’ll go to voicemail.