Big Bird

     "What's this big bird in the tree?" Jerry asked. I'm a bird watcher so I quickly went into the sun room before the 'big bird' flew away! 
     Just as I got there the 'big bird' flew down to the ground. It was no more than 10 feet away from the window! "Well," I said excitedly, "It's an owl! I wish it was facing us so I could know for sure..." 
     Just as I said that it turned it's head around 180 degrees! It was an owl! A Great Horned Owl! Oh, I was so excited!
     Then he turned his head back around. His wings spread out and he flew up into our large White Pine Tree! 
     I shuddered. Dangling from his feet was a  long snake! The owl sat in the tree eating his lunch. It was probably just a Gardner snake but still, I hate snakes...
     But even the snake couldn't dampen my excitement of seeing the owl in my own back yard!

Snakes

     One hot summer day I laid down on a lounge chair in our back yard. I relaxed and was soon sleeping. When I woke up a little later and started to get up out of my chair...I saw, through the spaces of the ribbing, something that made me freeze! Two snakes twisted up around each other were directly below me!!! 
     I hate snakes! What were they doing under my chair? How long had they been there? How could I get up off my chair? What kind of snakes were they? Oh, it was bad. I didn't know what to do...
     Where had they come from? They didn't look like garter snakes. They actually had an interesting design on the backs. But that didn't help me any. 
     We had a rock garden beside the sidewalk going from the driveway to the patio by the back door of our house. Lately when I had walked by I thought I heard some rustling among the rocks. But I could never see what it was. Now I suddenly knew...these two snakes!!! 
     Now, don't ask me how I did it, but I got out of my chair and I killed those two snakes! I still wonder if they had any babies in the rock garden! I'll never know. I didn't see any more and we don't live there any more.
     I looked up snakes in the encyclopedia (no computers back then) and by the pictures, these two were Milk Snakes. I also discovered they like to live near buildings. Well, those two just got a little too friendly. 
     Yes, I'm the person who loves all of nature. Animals, birds, lakes, flowers, mountains, oceans, trees, stars, you name it, I love it... Well...not snakes...cockroaches...stink bugs...skunks...slugs...