bird brains and snake wacking

We live out in the NE part of Phoenix where there's still open desert. You go to sleep hearing the owls hooting and the coyotes howling.

Heaven.

The downside of the desert living are the rattle snakes. We've tried relocation, but they'd come back. So we've just gotten used to having to destroy the snakes. I perfer shooting, but that's not allowed.

Since my dad's been sick, my mom has had to perform this undesireable task since the snakes started showing up in March from the early warm spell.

Last night, mom and I were in the hot tub, and I was facing out to the bird feeder. After about ten minutes, about a dozen male and female quail came walking down the hill from the feeder right up to the wall (we built into a hill). I made some sort of snarky comment of the quail go marching on. Instead of looking for food, they were just watching something.

Now it was getting creepy. Just then a movement in front of the quail caught my eye. The familar pattern of black and white bands by the rattlesnake tail. As he moved, I could tell it was a young one.

As I informed my mom of why the birds were behaving they way they were, she said "hope it doesn't come down the wall." I almost felt sorry for the snake as the birds kept following it (kinda picking on it).

But sure enough, the snake slid down the wall as I was bringing my bikini out to dry. I didn't say anything to my mom, but went and got the tool we use to kill the snakes, came back to face my fear.

Was I scared. Oh yeah. I got lucky in that he was still against the wall so I used the wall as a choke point to help quickly decapitate the poor snake (much easier than the uneven gravel). Then I made the offering to the desert, and put the head in the bushes (so nobody steps on it by mistake).

Came in shaking. My dad said "get that girl some vodka." I admitted that I wouldn't have done that if it was an adult. And I conceeded that shooting would be a lot easier (if you didn't have to deal with a visit from Sheriff Joe).