Snake on a Stick

I am fascinated by snakes. Until they get too close. Last Saturday I was dropping Lisa off after our quilt block class downtown, and as I pulled up in her driveway, she screamed, "You ran over a snake!!" Really, really loudly. I slammed on the brakes, and my first thought was "If the snake was under my car, could it climb inside?" My second thought was "I wonder if my hearing will ever be the same?" I backed up (no sickening splat or thump sound) and there it was, all curled up. Lisa said it was stretched across the driveway when I pulled up and over it. I must need glasses, because I never saw it.

Being the nature activists we are, we decided to Save The Snake. That was after Lisa determined it wasn't poisonous. After choosing and discarding several too small sticks, Lisa grabbed the longest stick she could find - part of a quilting frame. (We had JUST taken the quilt off!) Doesn't everyone have those in their garage?

She pushed. (That wet spot was from my car air conditioning, not from the snake. I checked.)

She prodded.

She managed to get the snake on the stick.



She seems quite proud of herself, doesn't she? Hey, look at me, I can quilt AND wrangle snakes, all in the same day!
She carried him (her?) over to a clump of grass and trees, and set him free. And he promptly climbed (slithered) up the tree, to the tallest branch. I didn't stop taking pictures, but I made sure I was far enough away as to not be in his line of "flight". I just had this creepy feeling that it was going to launch itself out of the tree, straight at my neck. And yes, bite me.


I checked before I left, and he was still hanging out in the trees, waiting to fly.

Added later: My friend Julie has just celebrated another Kirking of the Tartans, and reminded me about her Wild Loin of Boar with Bog Myrtle recipe. For some reason I think of it as her "girding of the loins" recipe. You know, once a loin, always a loin. Anyway, go check out the recipe. Sounds yummy. It's probably even better if you eat it with nothing between you and your plaid.