I was dubbed a bit of a hero last summer, compliments of a highly thankful gal who was that close to meeting up with the nasty pole end of a high-flying runaway beach umbrella. And it was truly a missile on a mission, fueled by a fierce and sudden gust of wind. Being advantageously close by, I headed the projectile off at the pass, which ended the flight of the multicolor anti-sun device within maybe5 feet of the sunning 20-something gal.

She was oblivious to it closing in. Nobody had yelled a warning since the freaky gust had most beach folks scrambling…