SNAKE SIGNALS - Opening segment (Scroll down for earlier chapters)

     For those of you who missed the news, I learned recently that 350,000 pet snakes have been released into the Everglades.  We’re not talking about garter snakes; we’re talking about snakes that can squeeze the life out of a giant redwood tree.  If you’re not a giant redwood tree, I would be more concerned.  We’re talking about large boa constrictors. 

     I share this news, in case some of you had “swimming in the Everglades” on your “to do” list before you die.  You might want to scratch that off your list.  You may want to hang closet doors instead.

     Thinking about those snakes, reminded me of my first encounter with “snake signals.”  A “snake signal” is the way a person informs others, who are miles away, that they have encountered a snake.  I might add that many people will use the same signal when encountering a small, dried-up worm on a sidewalk.

     I was about eight years of age when I first discovered this phenomenon.  Picking up a harmless garter snake as it wiggled through the grass in our yard, I was extremely proud of my catch.  I decided to show mom my snake.  “Lord have mercy!” she screamed, suspending herself in mid-air, about four feet off the ground.  I was impressed with her instant recognition of my snake, not to mention her ability to suspend herself in mid-air.

     I quickly learned that snake sightings often cause screeching, levitation, fainting spells, pant-wetting, death-bed confessions, and general hysteria. 

    It’s little wonder that I would experience many other “snake signals” in the years ahead.

    One summer I worked at a zoo where my father was the zoo veterinarian.

To be continued...check back soon