ORLANDO SENTINEL (Florida) 13 December 10 Winter Park's Turtle Lady is Central Park fixture (Joseph Freeman)
Winter Park: In its animal ordinance, the city clearly states where dogs aren't allowed to roam. But what about smaller, non-furry species?
On a recent morning in the prime no-canine-frolic zone of Central Park, Carol Bachicha was out "walking" her three turtles.
Unless the temperature dips too far, Bachicha, 53, is at the park every morning letting Slidell, Randal the Rascal and Valentine emerge from their shells, stretch their legs and burrow under leaves, which pretty much sums up their activity for an entire two hours. The latter two turtles will fit in your hand, but Slidell, a large red-eared slider, is roughly the size of a deflated football.
"People call me 'The Turtle Lady,'" said Bachicha, as she vigilantly scans the lawn lest her pets make a "run" for it. A week ago, Valentine was able to elude her, and she has been searching for him since.
As might be guessed from her clothes, Bachicha is not the sort of casual turtle owner who taps on the glass of the terrarium at feeding time and calls it a day. Her zip-up sweatshirt is splattered with multicolored turtle patterns. Every single accessory on her body, from necklace to bracelet to rings to eyeglasses, have some turtle design.
For Bachicha, it's turtle, turtle, turtle. She lost her Maitland call-center job in January after three years and couldn't afford to stay in her apartment by the summer. She subsists on unemployment, going from hotel to hotel and spending some nights in her 2002 Mazda Protégé. Several weeks ago, the hotel where she was staying objected to the presence of turtles in her room. She checked out that day.
The Turtle Lady won't stay in a shelter because she fears for her pets' safety.
Unemployed and without a fixed address, others might find toting turtles around cumbersome. But Bachicha is comforted and inspired by them as she tries to steady her life.
"These little fellas out here, they keep my spirits high. Otherwise, I can easily fall into a deep depression given all the hardships I endured," she said, holding Randal in her hand and lightly petting his shell. She even feels a kind of vague, spiritual connection with them.
"If the turtle is your favorite pet, it means you like to withdraw into your shell and think deep thoughts. You move slowly toward your goals, but you always get there. I've always been more of a loner, which is characteristic of turtles."
Collecting memorabilia
Originally from Santa Fe, N.M., Bachicha moved to Winter Park to attend Rollins College in 1975 and stuck around after graduating. She has loved turtles since she was a child and started collecting themed paraphernalia about 20 years ago.
To prove this, she whips out an old Florida drivers license, issued in 1993. A smiling Bachicha is wearing a choker with turtles and droopy turtle earrings.
When she sends gifts home, her father has an idea of what's inside.
"She has given me T-shirts and neckties and socks with turtles on them," said Benny Bachicha of Santa Fe. "I don't know how she manages to fly home with her turtles; I guess the airline allows her to do that."
His daughter has amassed a treasure trove of turtle souvenirs that could fill a small museum, most of which is in storage since she lost her apartment.
"I've got turtle lamps. Turtle footstools, a huge turtle beanbag chair from FAO Schwartz. I have turtle shower curtains, turtle shower curtain rings, turtle bath rug, turtle bath accessories, turtle pictures in turtle picture frames."
Conversations with Bachicha always come back to her favorite subject, as when asked whether people were "puzzled" by her attachment.
"They're kind of puzzled." She pauses. "And by the way, I have turtle puzzles as well. Turtle jigsaw puzzles."
Bachicha brings her pets to Central Park because no dogs are allowed there. John Holland, head of the city's parks department, said the turtles also violate the city ordinance banning pets there.
"Legally, yes, but philosophically, so would all the birds and squirrels in the park," Holland said. "I've had to ask a person to leave Central Park who was walking their bunny rabbit, but it was on a leash."
Besides, Holland joked about the turtles, "We might not be able to catch them."
Winter Park's Turtle Lady is Central Park fixture

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