Someone suggested a blog
on this so here I go. I knew before I
married her that Frieda was a stray pickeruper.
Once at the drive in restaurant she picked up what had to be one of the
ugliest dogs ever.
We have gone through a mob of dogs and
cats in these 48 years. Once she and the
girls came home with what was called a Cabit.
Now I was assured that this barely weaned little thing with a stub for a
tail and back legs longer than the front followed them home from all way across
town. Yeah, I bought that and a
suspended bridge in San Frisco the same day.
The tail was not bobbed off as I thought but was born that way. It seems that they are an Asian breed and has
long legs for they originate in marsh country.
The others were dogs and not really unusual
but at the time we were buying dry and canned dog and cat food she was feeding
every stray that came through the yard.
She used to put out dog food on our
carport for a big female coon. Now our
neighbor John Craddock had quite a garden and had electric wire around it to
keep critters and especially Frieda`s coon out.
He finally set a trap and caught her.
The coon not Frieda. He took her to Obion creek bottom near Springhill and released her. In a week she would be back begging on our
back step. We would have fed her by hand
but I was afraid she would snap a finger.
One evening we looked out to check and she
was there. Frieda had already put out a
plate for her but she ignored it. She
left and in a few minutes she was back with four or five babies. She paraded them for a while and left again
without eating. In about the time it
would take to nurse them and get them asleep she was back. Ate her supper and left. There can be no doubt that she brought them
for the single purpose of showing them off.
She spent several years visiting us before it stopped. She must have had a den in the woods behind
us and near the town creek. We have
missed her visits.
Now she is feeding strays plus a big fat
opossum that wants to be close to her so it took residence under the shed with
the old feral cat that lives there and also mooches off us. It is so big that it must be at least two
generations removed from domestic.
Now to the part I am writing this
for. The snake. Lloyd Callison was doing some plumbing under
the house and told me he found a snake but it had not been dead long for it was
soft. He said he brought it out and left
it in the yard. I looked and it was
clearly in hibernation. I told him not to tell Frieda for she might
make me move thinking there were more.
After he left she came home from visiting
her mom and I decided I better tell her before she saw it and stroked on me. Not my wife.
“Did he kill it.” “Can we put it
in a box and bring it in.” “What do they
eat?” Mice and bugs. “If we cannot bring it in can we put it back
under the house?” How about the
shed? “Won`t that be colder?”
Needless to say she got a shoe box for
bedding and a baby blanket to place under and over. Naturally her snake had to have a NIKE
box. She fixed the top so it was cracked
open so that if it makes it to spring it will be able to slide right out. It is probably last years hatch as it was long
but only about 3/4” thick. Just a baby.
Now
that is not the end of the story. This
lady will stop right in the highway and run around front to pick up a terrapin
or turtle and move it to the shoulder on the other side to keep it from getting run
over. Not considering that that may be
where it came from. I just hope she
never encounters a big old alligator snapping turtle that can reach half way
behind itself. Fingers have disappeared
that way.
I do not even think Janie Howell is that
bad. She is a different kind of wife but
she really is still a keeper but do not tell her that.
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