The Snake Story of 2014

(Nearly) every summer has one: an encounter with a snake that turns into a story for our family memory bank.  Last year, that encounter happened on the Fourth of July; and this Fourth of July, I remembered that I had only written about the 2014 snake experience on Facebook, but not here on the blog.  In the future, when I write the Great Snake Encounter of 2015, I'm sure I'll want to link to the 2014 one, so I'd better post it here now.  :)   Here is what I wrote on Facebook on June 27...

The most exciting news of the day from our little corner of the world is not the fact that my spices are now neatly arranged in alphabetical order (a ruthless invasion by pesky ants made the cleaning-out of some of my food storage cupboards a higher priority today than it normally is!)...nor is it the fact that our chimney is now clean, thanks to the friendly chimney sweeps whose annual visit we always enjoy as we chat about gardens and kids...nor is it the fact that while I was off in another part of the house, feeling good about how happily my kids were all getting along as they were eating lunch, they (the three youngest, it appears) were joyfully and systematically shredding all the napkins from the napkin holder on the kitchen table. No, the most exciting news of the day, BY FAR, is that I saw a snake in our yard this morning.

AND I ALMOST SPARED ITS LIFE.

Almost. 

It was likely "just" a black snake, and I know they're great for keeping down the mice and rat population, so when I looked out the kitchen window and saw a black *thing* reaching up the side of the woodshed where no black "thing" had previously been reaching, I actually contemplated having mercy on it and letting it be. But then I couldn't. I just couldn't. I HAD to go outside to see for sure what it was; and then when I saw our neighbor's black-and-white cat that likes to hang around here, I thought maybe the cat would deal with it (I've HEARD cats do such things), so I went back inside and watched from the window.

The cat playfully patted it, then laid down on the grass. Not quite the vicious attack I was hoping for. 

I called Jeff at work for advice, and he apologized that he wasn't here to deal with it. Then I called over to my neighbor's to ask Wilma what she would do if a black snake showed up in her yard. I really wasn't sure! I know that Wilma's husband feels about like I do when it comes to snakes, so I was certain they wouldn't be too excited about a snake coming around; but would they kill it?

When I called, Wilma was outside; but one of her girls answered the phone; and as soon as she heard "snake" (which I said in a very calm voice, I'll have you know!!) , she sort of shrieked and said that they'd be right over. The three girls showed up, armed with a big hoe and an ax; and I'm guessing that they were as eager to see the spectacle of me reacting to the snake as they were to see the critter itself! In years past, they've always seemed to get a kick out of me and my crazy snake adventures. Can't imagine why!! 

By that point, I'd decided that, knowing the tendency of my kids to run around outside barefoot without giving a single thought to where they're placing their feet, and knowing the love Moriah has for going up by the chicken coop and into the woodshed (both prime places to find a snake), and knowing the phobia that at least two of the residents in the neighborhood (my neighbor Douglas and I) have about snakes, it really was the best thing for it to be killed, so Rosalie, the 16-year-old neighbor girl, did the honors. (If there were a show Are You Braver than a 16-Year-Old?, I would surely fail.)  A crowd of kids gathered around her to watch, and I? Well, I was in the FAR back row of that crowd.  After she had killed it, its body was writhing around eerily, as they do; and several others got to take a whack at it. The head had been disconnected from the body; and when Rosalie went to gather up the body to dispose of it, she said she'd give anybody $5 who would pick up the head with his bare hands and put it on the hoe for her.

If you're thinking I did that for $5, you're nuts. 

But David did it, and now he's $5 richer. 

Later, my boys assured me that the next time we have a snake on our land, THEY are quite capable of dealing with it for me. I'm so glad to be surrounded by such brave people!!! 

One of these cats, by the way, is the fierce animal that I was hoping would attack and kill--or, at least, scare away--the snake; but no such luck.  Because I didn't take any pictures at all of the snake, before or after its death, I thought I'd at least include a picture of the cat, even though this was taken on a different occasion.  

For those who particularly enjoy crazy snake stories (or maybe you just like laughing at me in my moments of hysteria!) ;-), here are the previous installments of the Fisher Family Snake Stories!
2008
2009
2010
2011
2013