Heebie Jeebies (snakes)

I love snakes. My friend used to have a couple of boas that she would show me everytime i visited her. I remember in third grade i got to help hold a ten foot python (with ten other kids) at an assembly on reptiles. Just holding on to my section it was heavy, and thick too.

Even though i live in a town that has lots of empty fields and native chapparal, I have hardly come across any snakes. We found a garter snake at the house a few years back but that is it (the area is still wild enough that we regularly see silver foxes, opossums, skunks (one even comes into my backyard), and deer).

I remember that one time when i was working on checking some newly planted trees to see if they were alive (Habitat restoration) we saw at least three king snakes in that field.
I have even seen a rattler once.

The only thing that scares me in the wild is sneaky little field mice. I like mice in cages where they dont surprise you, but in the same field where we saw the king snakes there were lots of field mice who would jump up and scare the s*** out of us, or scamper across our shoes (my co-workers and I ran out of the field and wouldn’t go back).

Some other cool reptiles are the legless lizards (Different from snakes because they have eyelids, other than that they look just like snakes). They are very strong and can easily get through your fingers if you dont hold on to them hard enough). They usually have silver or yellowish bellies and black backs. They hide in the sand in the dunes here (Central coastal California) and hunt for insects. To find them you have to find bushes and dig around the roots for them.

I’m not really afraid of snakes, either, I just get the heebie jeebies when something comes slithering at me from out of nowhere. It’s the surprise thing; you don’t expect there to be anything there, and suddenly there is. EEK :slight_smile:

Spiders and most insects are another story. Major heebie jeebies. Screaming in terror heebie jeebies. I don’t know why, exactly. I think part of it is because of the gawd-awful, gross-out mess they make when they’re squished, and they’re so damn easy to squish. But they’re also so quick. You look away for a second to find help to remove the creepy-crawly, and when you look back, gone. Then you move something, and boom, there it is again! EEK! And all those legs, and eyes, and wavering antennae… blech! Worms, larvae, maggots, caterpillars, centipedes, etc., all fall in the same category, too. About the only bugs I appreciate for their asthetics are ladybugs, june bugs and butterflies, and I’d probably still run around screaming my dang fool head off if one landed on me.


“I hope life isn’t a big joke, because I don’t get it,” Jack Handy

The snake in the Eden story was a lot of hooey, too. Never understood why you people hated them so; I consider them one of my finest inventions.

:::::note to self- stop hanging out with all these freaky snake lovers so much:::::

:wink:


An optimist sees an opportunity in every calamity; A pessimist sees a calamity in every opportunity.

C’mon, now. Try to put your prejudice aside and take a closer look at them. They are truly beautiful and amazing creatures. Or is it a Freudian fear?

I don’tmind snakes nearly as much as things with far too many legs, like centipedes ad millipedes. Ick. My husband is licensed to breed venomous reptiles, but he doesn’t do it for a living anymore, thank God. That’s pretty creepy. On the whole I can tolerate them, even pick them up. But I’m not snuggling with one n the couch watching TV or anything.

      • If you ever get the chance, sidewinders are really cool to watch: in real-life it’s much more interesting than on TV. If you chase one down a sand dune they will go a few yards and then suddenly-instantly-effortlessly sink straight down, disappearing. (Their eyes are still above the surface, but you have to look reeeal close to see them.) - MC

Sounds cool to me.

Some snakes are downright cute. Ringnecks only get about 10 inches long. They are dark but with a vivid orange or yellow ring around the neck; their bellies are also brightly colored. And Green snakes are adorable, too.

King snakes, which come in several subspecies, eat other snakes and actually seem to prefer poisonous varieties. They are partially immune to venom, whereas the viper is not. In a fight, the viper may die of its own bites. I’ve seen King snakes killed by snake-hating idiots who don’t realize they just saved a few copperheads.

Not that poisonous snakes are much of a threat in this country. You are more likely to die of a bee sting. Here in Tennessee, some backwoods churches still practice ritual snake-handling. They take literally the Bible passage that says believers “shall take up serpents…and if they drink any poisonous thing…” it won’t harm them. We read about a death every 3 or 4 years. Most bite victims just experience pain and swelling. Funny, we never hear about these folks drinking pesticide or gasoline. My point is that those who are demonstrating their faith are taking the more visually exciting but safer option of picking up a rattlesnake.

If you have an unwanted snake on your property (that’s not just passing through), please don’t kill it. Call a wildlife agency, a zoo, the Humane Society, a pet store, animal control, anybody…but don’t kill it. They are just innocent victims of the Eden story and all the accumulated fear/ignorance ever since.