If my son flew away in a balloon

Posted on October 17, 2009.

First of all, I wouldn’t be all that shocked. If there’s mischief to get into, he’s liable to find it.

Here’s the way I look at my son. He has the biggest, greatest heart that any person has ever had. His 13-year-old brain, however, is sometimes in question.

That being said, I can’t imagine he’d manage to get into the sort of trouble the young man in Colorado did the other day. As the balloon was flying around I have to say I pretty well pegged it. “He’s probably hiding in the house somewhere and isn’t even there,” I said at the time.

I have to say the contraption was pretty cool. I’ve already started construction on the Potts family version out in the garage. It’s going to be tethered down so nobody climbs in and flies away.

It’s sad to think of all the resources that went into tracking this balloon, trying to find this kid who was never missing. I’m of course glad he’s fine, but what a mess.

And then there’s the other thing I brought up, whether this thing was a hoax. Listen to an interview with the family here and pay close attention at about the 38-second or so mark to what the boy himself says.

Sounds like a hoax to me. I can’t believe people are still talking about. I can’t believe I am, either. Shame on me.