REPEATED "VISTORS" & EVENTS

Somethings never seem to change around here.  Events & occurrences may be be repeated more often than I expect them to be.  Cases in point:

While out in the yard yesterday, my Mother -- still visiting from Florida -- called out to me that my cat Wobs, had caught a snake. Naturally, I came running, both to see what Wobs actually had found, & too, to prevent the snake from being maimed/killed by Wobs.

Here is a photo of the snake Wobs had pinned down in the side yard ... just a few feet from the chair my Mother was sitting in a few minutes earlier.

For the benefit of the non-herpetologists viewing this post ... this is a small Copperhead Snake.

And" Yes" ... this is a POISONOUS snake !!

And "No" ... I did not kill it.  I released it -- well away from Wobs & the other cats -- in the more remote area of my property.

Not only is the sighting of various species of snakes a common happening this Spring, but so is my continued difficulty with hand tools.

Cutting & removing some large bamboo from one of the groves on my land, I once again had difficulty with a  hand saw ... determining what was bamboo & what was the flesh of my hand. I guess I am too aggressive with sharp objects.

NOTE TO SELF: Avoid the chain saw as much as possible.

Yes ... snakes & sharp, cutting tools.  Repeated again & again.

CHEAP TO FEED

My Mother -- Hilda -- arrived yesterday from Florida.  This is her now annual Spring-time visit to Arkansas.  She will be here for a week.

She flew up from Orlando to Memphis & then over to Little Rock, arriving on time & allowing us to race on down the Interstate in my truck, just as the latest thunderstorm was coming upon us.  Still, we made it to my home -- mostly -- high & dry.

One thing remains the same when each one visits the other;  we tend to eat "fast food" for lunch.  Both my Mother & me prefer to fix our own meals & eat at home normally.  Still, eating a bit of "junk" for lunch, while on these "vacations", enables us to get away from the house for awhile & allow Hilda to ... "see the sights of Arkansas". [Yeah, RIGHT.]

On today's tour, we moseyed on over to England -- Arkansas !!! -- for burgers at the local Sonic Drive-in.

WAIT.  What is a "mosey" ??  Is it the same as a "sauntered" ?? 

Whatever !!!

We had our cheeseburgers, along with fries for Hilda & tots for me.

Nothing like a cheeseburger combo, siting in a truck, on a cool Spring day.  Good tasting food & cheap !

SEEMS LIKE A LONG TIME

First of all ... the important news.  Today is WORLD TURTLE DAY.  Be sure to give your shelled-backed friends a hug today.

The above is feeding time for my larger tortoises; a tempting plate of mushrooms.

Now for a quick update of a personal nature.  My HP computer "died" last week.  It was old & it just was ... 'it's time". 

Replacing a computer is both expensive & time consuming.  What data could be saved from the old computer, while important, was not the entire content of the memory/storage in the HP, & the bottom line is: I lost a lot of stuff.

I'm currently attempting to use sources to "recover" as much as I can information wise -- while also "learning" the new lap top Toshiba's programs & new software -- but it's going to take awhile.

Still, after going most of a week without a computer -- along with all the information & sources the web provides -- it seems as if my life is getting back to "normal" ... whatever that is !

MORE SNAKE VISITORS

Both the local & national news -- Internet/print/radio & TV -- is lately filled with stories & pictures of the massive flooding through out the Mississippi River basin.  While much of the focus has been on the high water surrounding Memphis, Arkansas has not been spared.

Locally, I am still diverted from my normal road into the city, as it continues to be covered in H2O, & from the depth the H2O in surrounding streams & ditches, the road will remain closed for quite some time.

State wide, the Interstate 40 & Highway 70 flooding still hampers traffic trying to traverse Arkansas due to the flooding of the White River. The high H2O levels of the Mississippi River impact the drainage of the White River & delays the clearing of flooding from the highways & farmland.

In several of the news items I have read on the Internet & watched on TV regarding the flooding, the report included mention of the animals -- wild & domestic -- displaced from their homes. In the "wild" category, most often mentioned are alligators & snakes.

While the flooding on my property quickly receded after the rain storms, it seems I too have had more than my normal share of slivering visitors.  Some new faces arrived in the past few days.

While raking some leaves in the yard, as I gathered up a bunch to transfer to the yard cart, a large Brown H2O Snake fell at my feet. While the visual impression may repulse a few readers, I can assure you my (repaired) heart skipped a few beats when the snake landed at my feet.  When it comes to snakes ... I like a bit more warning of their presence.

I didn't have much time to view the snake, as it hit the ground running ... ah, slithering ... & was quickly heading North, as I was taking a few steps South. No time to grab the camera for a photo of "Big Boy".

It wasn't long before another legless reptile paid a visit to my yard; a snake more in size to my liking.

Traveling through my front yard was a Green Snake -- where do they come up with these names ?? -- about 15-18 inches in length.  A bug eater, it's also the right size to attract curious cats.  Thankfully, none of The Girls where with me when this snake was encountered.

This snake did remain placid long enough for me to get my camera & take these photos.  He or she -- I didn't "check" -- was then escorted away from the two "danger areas" -- "cat country" & the front road -- & placed where it would continue on it's journey.

These snake "visitors" always keep me attentive to my surroundings here at home, flooding or not.

SNAKES ... AND BIGGER SNAKES

It already seems as if this will be a year for snakes here on my homestead.  I don't know if the cool, wet Spring has been the culprit, but at various times & places on my property this year, I have found a snake or two.

Besides the snake I found in my kitchen -- which I wrote about on this blog back on April 20th -- I have since had several "encounters" -- all of the "third kind" -- with various species & sizes of snakes on my property.  They are everywhere this year.

This past weekend I had to "save" an 18 inch Garter Snake from my cat Nibblets.  "Miss Nibs" was having a good bit of fun -- for her, not the snake -- going back & forth in the grass with the frightened snake.  Since cats very seldom understand or respond to the word "NO" -- & that held true in this case -- I had to pick up the snake & transport it to a safer place in the yard.

I have always been interested in snakes.  I had a few as "pets" back in my Memphis days.  It's just when it comes to reptiles, I prefer turtles & lizards.

I am always surprised -- & a bit P.O.ed -- when I hear other people react so negatively about snakes.  [The same people seem to love their Pit Bulls !!]  These people have such a fear of snakes, that to them, all snakes are an object to be killed.

Today, my John Deere mower was returned from the dealer.  While talking with the guy who brought the mower back, we both saw a large (three foot) snake cross over the road, into my yard.  I guess my visitor was surprised I did not immediately rush over & kill the offending reptile, rather than allow it to proceed across the front lawn, which I did. 

The snake -- a Black Rat Snake -- is a regular on the property & I often see it in various places in the yard.  I'll probably see the snake a lot more, but not that delivery fella.

Now someone reading this will think a three foot snake is big.  No ... the snake in the photo below is BIG.

This is my friend Bill Lamar, with a Bushmaster ... a snake he collected this past weekend in the Amazon Basin of Peru.  This BIG snake is about 8-10 feet long.  And "yes" ... it is poisonous !!

I have known Bill Lamar for over 40 years & have been with him on trips to Central & South America. He leads tourists on trips to the jungle through his company Green Tracks. He also works with TV producers for shows on channels such as Animal Planet & National Geographic.  Bill is the one who collects the snakes & places them in the spot where the TV host being filmed can "discover" the animal.

Obviously, a BIG snake in Bill's jungle, is a LOT bigger than the "visitors" to my yard.

FLOODING IN ARKANSAS

Flooding continues to set records this Spring, both when it comes to the volume of H2O & to the record number of towns, cities & states affected.  This truly may be the return of the "Hundred Year Flood" & the worst flooding since 1927.

While places like Memphis, Tennessee are featured in national news stories for the flooding of the Mississippi River -- deservedly so -- the flooding of the White River in Central Arkansas may have one of the most major impacts when it comes to transportation & the national economy.

While the White River has flooded many homes & businesses -- especially the towns of Des Arc & DeVall's Bluff -- the river flooding of Interstate 40 -- one of the major East/West routes for trucks hauling just about everything from army weapons to fresh produce -- has created serious detours, adding miles & hours to any vehicle trying to cross Arkansas.

Note to "hipper" readers:  Interstate 40 is also used by many drug dealers.  No doubt, a lot of people are going to be finding themselves relegated to smoking twigs & seeds until the H2O recedes.

Westbound traffic on I-40 is redirected North to Bald Knob, Arkansas & Eastbound trucks are sent to Pine Bluff, on down to Lake Village, Arkansas & across the Mississippi River at Greenville, Mississippi.  Trucks then go North to Memphis.

The detours add from 200 to 300 miles for anyone trying to get between Memphis & Little Rock.

Highway 70 -- which was the "old" East/West road (before the Interstate System) -- is not an option for diverting Interstate traffic, as Highway 70 is also flooded from the same rivers.

Of course, it is not only the larger rivers which are flooding.  Almost every where I have been driving in the past few days, I have encountered flooded fields, swollen streams & many roads closed due to high H2O.

Traveling yesterday to Lonoke, Arkansas, I was amazed at the places where the H2O was at the pavement, on both sides of the road I was on.  All indications were that the flooding was across the road earlier in the week.

At my home, I have been luckier than some neighbors as to the effect of the rain & flooding.

 Above is a photo of the creek in the back of my house, taken last Monday.  I'd say it was more than "full".

This next photo was taken yesterday. Most of the H2O has drained off & things are returning to normal.

My flooding is gone ... for now/until the next major rain.  For so many others it will take weeks/ months to recover from this year's flooding.

SATURATED ...

Finally ... it appears the weather radar screens for central Arkansas are devoid of the mixture of colors -- green/yellow/red -- which have dominated them for the past 72 hours.  The question now remains:  How long till the flooding areas & TOTALLY soggy earth, returns to ... "normal" ??

I took this photo yesterday afternoon.  I thought the rain had finally stopped.  It hadn't.  I got caught in another downpour trying to capture the look of the flooded/swollen creek which separates my property.

The above photo shows "Lake Hilda" -- named for my Mother -- submerging the front yard to such a degree that the H2O flows over the driveway, like the H2O in a dam's spillway.

There are a lot of "projects" awaiting me this Spring, most of them involving repairs & clean-ups.

The fallen/broken trees await.  The front fence needs parts replaced.  The shed roof has a hole in it -- from a broken tree branch -- allowing H2O to drip close to my John Deere mower -- which by the way, awaits the earth to dry out -- so it can be picked up & repaired by the J.D. dealer. [The drive train broke the other day.]

I sure am looking forward to things getting back to "normal"; complaining about the heat ... the mosquito's ... along with having to haul H2O to trees & plants in the yard ... to keep them from drying & withering.

Right now ... it's just saturated !!!