And they called him Gator Bob

Way back in the year 2000, I met some nice people on a cruise chat board.  We all hit it off and decided to go on a cruise together.  This was the beginning of some great friendships.

 

Some of our bosomiest buddies from the group are Ron and Lyn, who live in Not Near Anything, Pennsylvania.  And if you know your US geography at all, it is especially not near Near Seattle.  Most years in the last 15, we have gone on a cruise with these folks and have had a hoot.  But 2 years ago, we decided to try something new and go on a Land Vacation together.

 After much research and debate, we found a small resort in Kissimmee, Florida that was easy for both couples to get to.  The running joke was about the small lake on the property and the one small alligator who resided there.

 

As our stay was winding down, with nary an alligator sighting, we were sad to be leaving this paradise.  I hopped in the shower on one of the last mornings and got quite a big surprise!

Now, let me point out, that I am not the sharpest tool in the shed first thing in the morning.  I’d probably be better after a cup of coffee, if only I drank the stuff!

 

But I look down at my feet in the shower and saw something green and scaly and ready to take off one of my limbs!

I quietly exited the shower….HA!  In the Blog Fodders words, “She boiled right out of there!”

 

The B.F. turned off the shower, closed the bathroom door and called the front desk to report a “critter” in our tub.  They figured it was a gecko and I was just being hysterical and sent the maintenance man with a butterfly net to catch it.  A BUTTERFLY NET….to capture a ferocious, woman eating, jaws of death alligator!

 

Suddenly, I had a better understanding of Marlon Perkins sending good ole Jim into deal with the animals!

 

A few seconds later, the maintenance guys comes back out clutching the ferocious beast.  And he said…

 “Um, it’s a toy….”

Yup, a plastic, grown-to-three-times-its-size-in-water, bought-in-the-dollar-store-in-Not-Near-Anything-Pennsylvania toy!

 

I was mostly mad I hadn’t thought of doing this myself!

 But, the last I saw of the deadly alligator was as a trophy on the maintenance guy’s golf cart.

 We did hear stories about it as we traveled around the resort on the last day…”Did you hear about the crazy woman who called in a toy alligator in her tub?”

 So, fast forward to Labor Day weekend, 2015.  We decided to go to the same resort, with the same friends.  We did have an alligator moratorium that no one listened too.   But we got curious about that toy gator and what ever happened to him.

The B.F. corned one of the maintenance guys and asked.

 As it turns out, one of the ladies who works at the resort thought that was the funniest story ever.  She asked the maintenance guy, who then went by the name Gator Bob, if she could borrow the alligator toy.  She then hid it in her friends shower.

The friend thought it was so funny, she asked to keep the alligator toy and took him to her yacht outside of Tampa, where he sailed the Gulf of Mexico for a year.

 Then, tragically, Gator Bob, the maintenance guy died in a motorcycle accident.  He was well liked and is missed by staff and guests alike at this resort.

The alligator toy, now named Gator Bob, came back home to the resort and was joined by his friend, Sting Ray.  They both have a wonderful life at the resort, traveling around in style on a golf cart.

 

Which goes to show, it takes so little in life to give many people joy!

And, after another week at that resort, we still haven’t seen a real, live alligator.  There were blow up alligators, and alligator socks, and alligator key chains, but not a single, bite-off-your-leg critter!