Good morning, Florida

Good morning, Florida!

Just so we're clear, this here, inside the walls? This is my house. See all that lovely sprawling nature outside? That is YOUR house. You don't eat in mine and I won't eat in yours. Capeesh?

hmmm...not so much, eh?

After a marvelous night of restful sleep, I am awakened and there's a little request made of me. "Can you make lunches this morning?"

But of COURSE! I love making lunches! I sauntered out of bed and into the kitchen to begin my work. Now, we have a pretty open floor plan, so the entry from the garage, from the front door, and the pantry are all within an arms reach of each other. When the flooring guys finished up their work a couple of months ago, the trim around the garage door particularly is rather gappish. It's made for interesting discovery, but nothing as interesting as this morning.

Before my very eyes, in the crevice there by the garage door was something rather bulky even for us! I turned the kitchen light on and turned quickly to Mini Mann and said, "What is this?! When did you get this toy?" He turned, looked, and ran crying into the bathroom to get Daddy. Apparently, it wasn't a toy. It lay there nice enough with a dead lizard right next to it. It was a real snake. In my HOUSE!

Well, thank goodness to a dear friend who answered her phone at the ungodly hour of 7:00AM, we learned that it was probably a non-poisonous little corn snake, but that didn't make a single person in my house any braver. There was sweating. There was inappropriate laughter. Shreiking. Tears. Shaking. Someone even threw up!

In the end, though, my hero used the barbeque tongs and delicately freed the little bugger from the inside garage door where he apparently became stuck, most probably the night before...eghphphph!, and tossed him/her outside. Back to its house and out of mine.

I'm really glad to learn a couple of things from this little experience.

1. We have snake fighting tools currently in our possession! Who would have known?

2. My Softie is the bravest man I know. (and no, baby, I don't think that snake is outside plotting for revenge against you with the tongs.)

3. If you don't remember buying it, it's probably not a toy.

4. Trying to pick up the snake by its tail didn't work for Softie the way it did for Moses (Exodus 4:2-4), but we (I) screamed a little when he tried and then I used completely inappropriate humor and brought Moses into our little equation.

So, now, I believe I shall without fear go and get ready for my day. Strange though, how similar common household items can look to a serpent after such an experience!!! GAH!