Memories of Garages and Snakes

Yesterday's post on my sister's blog has an interesting title:  "Country Life = sssssSnakesssss" which got me to remembering snake events when I was young.  But first, a little background ...

When I was two years old, Mom and Dad bought a small piece of property from Dad's parents and built a cement block garage across the road from Grandma and Grandpa.  It was designed to eventually be a one-car garage with an attached workshop.  The garage was to serve as a temporary home until they could build a house - so it had a regular front door and a big window in the spots designed to one day have two garage doors.

Much to Mom's dismay, the years kept rolling by and we were still living in that garage.  It was comfortable enough ... one side had a living and dining area and a bathroom, the other side had the entry, master bedroom, kitchen and a laundry/storage room.  We had a sleeper sofa in the living room that served as my bed - it later became a bed for two when my sister was born.  Mom did eventually get her house 12 or so years later when I was a freshman in high school.  But I digress ...

Living in the country, we occasionally had small garter snakes get inside.  No big deal.  Until one day when the snake wasn't a garter snake.

I was still pretty young and we were getting ready to leave home.  I opened the front door and was mesmerized by a big snake that was coiled up between the screen and the wooden door ... a copperhead!  I'm not sure who was more surprised, me or the snake.  I can remember standing there watching it as it was flicking its tongue - while Mom and Dad were yelling to move back NOW.  Turned out there was a nest of baby copperheads outside the garage below the big living room window, just a few feet from the front door.

Yes, life in the country does indeed include snakes.