There's a snake in your mailbox

We have our share of snakes in Bittersweet Woods. Most are friendly; several are regulars. There is the milk snake that lives in the brick enclosure behind our newspaper box. A couple of summers ago, we found this note by the porch:

There was this photo captured by the mail delivery person who was concerned that the said reptile might be a copperhead. We were greatly relieved when my son-in-law Gregg correctly identified it as a milksnake.

Occasionally we find evidence that it still resides in the same place - snakeskin sheds, comments from our housesitter ("it was looking out at me from the mailbox"). One day this summer, I glanced at the patio and there it was crawling underneath the gas grill. I went out for a photo shoot. But that guy was not happy. It abruptly coiled up and was all business when it saw me. I quickly stepped back and gave it some room.

Then there is our resident black rat snake. It is about 4 feet long and occasionally appears out of nowhere, usually spread out languidly in the grass or staring at us when we open a storage shed where it sometimes hangs out. It is so laid back - I never have seen it get agitated in our presence. "Blackie" and I usually have a nice chat; I do most of the talking. It looks at me blankly, as if to say "really!" to anything I say.

Blackie recently appeared on our pool deck one morning. It's long black form was draped along the deck against the house. I thought it was a branch or something else - until it moved. Timing was not good. Family members had just arrived for a swim, including Joe, Judy, along with Luke and Johanna and their four kids. I thought they might freak out and was envisioning having to pick up and relocate Blackie.

I kneeled down and explained the situation to it: "Blackie, you really need to get off this deck. Humanoids - some youthful - are here; they may frighten you. And neither of us wants the stress of my having to move you out of the way. I mean, you and I are friends, but picking up snakes is stressful for me. You wouldn't like it either. So, you need to get your black rat butt out of here, OK?" Blank stare. I hoped the message got through.

I took a picture then went to greet the guests. I explained the snake presence. Fortunately, they were excited to see it and not at all skittish about having a snake around. They rushed out to the deck for a sighting. Blackie had moved on from the deck into the mulch. It was the best outcome. They were able to see it, and it kept moving and was soon out of sight.

We'll see Blackie around again, along with other critters, pets, and people in Bittersweet Woods.