Ab Fab

Yesterday I had an absolutely wonderful experience. I was bringing Ginny back from the backyard, walking through the path on the side of the house, when I noticed this guy <----- about 3 inches from my right ankle.

He didn't strike, and I wasn't even sure if he was alive. I stupidly moved my ankle closer to him to see what would happen and he moved his head a fraction. So I went back into the house and got my camera.

When I got back outside he was in the same position I left him in. He looked remarkably thin, and I would guess he hadn't eaten for some time. I snapped a couple of photos and went to get Rich. When I took Rich out to him Rich insisted he must be dead because he wasn't moving, not even an inch. So I did what any self respecting fan of Steve Irwin would do. I poked him with a stick. He didn't move. I poked him again. Nothing. I poked him a third time, and he stuck his tongue out at me, which in snake probably means "knock it the fuck off."

So we watched his laid back self for a few moments, wondering where he had come from. He looked like no snake we had ever seen before. Well, that's not exactly true. To me he looked like a constrictor, like someone's pet that had escaped and wandered into our yard for some reason. 

So I left him and went inside and looked up snakes of North Carolina photos. He wasn't any of them. This leads me to believe he doesn't belong here at all. I felt like calling someone to come and get him, but who would you call? Animal control out here in the county would simply destroy him. I couldn't take him to the SPCA where I worked, because they only accept animals from the city limits, and besides, Rich wouldn't let me pick him up.

Anyway, a friend of mine decided to name him Vindaloo, which seems like a perfectly acceptable name for a snake. He needed a name anyway, as during the hour I got to know him I considered him my friend.

I WAS worried that he would die overnight, as he didn't seem to want to move at all, and as I said, he didn't appear to have eaten recently. He was quite thin. This morning I went out to see if he was there, and Vindaloo was gone. I'm sorry about that. I was hoping to see him again, because he truly was beautiful. And this time, without Rich around, I would have picked him up, moved him to a less high traffic area, and said goodbye.

Have a great Saturday everyone.

PS... I wouldn't have picked him up with my hands. There was a forked stick nearby. Probably not a good idea anyway given that he's been identified as a copperhead.

Fall is (technically) Coming

I saw the first Monarch Butterfly today. I always rejoice when I see them because it means that summer is drawing to a close. While I love parts of summer: gardening, Livvie playing in the pool... fall is my favorite season.

When I was a kid I waited every year for the smell of mouldering leaves. Every October I would be ecstatic, because Halloween was coming. It wasn't about the candy. It was about the smell in the air and the crispness and the apples about to become a pie.

Since I've moved to NC I've lost a great deal of that. The air here doesn't begin to cool down until about mid-October, and the leaves don't really start falling until then either. Fall here is quick, it lasts about a month, before the wetness and dreariness of winter arrives. It's the only thing I don't like about living here.

In a month or so I will start pruning my plants back and mulching them for the winter. I will start laying in supplies of apples and oatmeal to make apple crisp (I usually don't buy apples out of season). I'll buy more molasses to make spice cookies. I'll be putting out corn for the deer. And for now, I'll be watching for more monarchs to make my day complete.