Snakes On A Ceiling

And other musings about summer living in the country vs. the city (PART I)

I didn’t snap a pic of the (identical) garter in my house. This photo is from the internet.

1. Mr. Snugs and I were quietly watching Parks and Rec for the umpteenth time after a particularly grueling day last week. (Don’t you miss that show?) He’d been working later than normal, and I’d had a doctor appointment and blood work done. We suddenly heard a loud thud coming from our home office. We both jumped up and tip-toed slowly through the dining room to the office door where we were greeted by a yellow and black snake head poking out. Of course screaming ensued with most of it being, “WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?!” “IS THAT A FUCKING SNAKE?!” “OMG, IT’S A FUCKING SNAKE!” “WHAT THE FUCK DO WE DO?!” Questions about how this thing came in and how long it’s been living here are racing through my head. What caused the thud? Did it fall from the ceiling? How’d it get up there in the first place? Am I in SNAKENADO? Are the frogs and locusts coming next? Normal thoughts. Then to my horror and surprise, Mr. Snugs who is terrified of little spiders became somewhat of a snake charmer, coaxing the five-foot long garter into a box (after about 30 minutes of it recoiling under our office couch) and safely took it outside. Needless to say, the relaxation portion of the night was over, and I’m still adapting to this living in the country thing. (Shout-out to Jan Peppler here, who writes about making peace with where you live and other creative things in her Substack, Finding Home. I recommend checking it out.)

2. I grew up in a small farming community in Western Massachusetts. At 18, I moved to South Florida for undergrad, and I’ve been living in cities ever since from Dublin, Ireland to Portland, Oregon. Until October 2021, I spent eight years living in downtown Northampton, MA. Being ever the city girl, it was hard to make the decision to move to the country last October. But between the ongoing pandemic and my health conditions, it was necessary for me to get fresh air and be able to escape the irresponsible neighbors and tourists that didn’t give a damn about anyone but themselves. The adjustment wasn’t as hard as I imagined, but I attribute this to the dire necessity it was for me to move or the downtown inhabitants would actually put me back in the ICU or worse.

3. But one thing I’m not adapting to well is the creatures. Forever OCD about all things being clean, the first sign of “caraway seeds” (what I call mouse droppings) had me beyond flustered. I thought they’d go away in the warmer weather, but alas. Then there are the zillions of ants that come and go in just ONE cabinet where I keep crackers. My husband installed “anthrax” (what I really thought the ant traps were called when he ordered them) throughout the kitchen and only have had one ant incident since (but unfortunately many more lost crackers). And then there’s the snake…

   Have creature feature stories or ramblings to share? I’d love to read them. Happy August.

   

   “Fleeing the scene in a snake-free pool” Photo by DES