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Now I’m Ready!

A blog reader requested that I show no snake photos without a warning first.  In case anyone else is concerned, I won’t show snake photos because (1) I won’t show pictures of dead snakes and (2) If it ain’t dead, I’m not getting close enough to focus in and get a decent picture!

Now that we understand that . . a trip to Tractor Supply and I’m ready for however many of those critters might come my way.  First . . snake repellant.  The lady at Tractor Supply says people swear by this stuff and it smells so good, I’m thinking of covering the floor in the house with it.  Wonder if it works for scorpions?  I’m not putting a link to the site because I carefully cropped out a picture of a snake but if you go to the website . . beware . . there’s a picture there.  Anyway, this stuff smells like cloves and cinnamon.  It made my car smell good.

We’re going to sprinkle this around the perimeter of the garden and see what happens.

Then, I bought some more boots.

I love these boots!  I found them online and when I put in my zip code to see where’s the closest place that had them . . of course . . Tractor Supply!  I love that store!  I love the people who work there!

This is purely coincidental but look at how my flip flops match these boots!  Remember how the same thing happened with my rain boots?  The first tan line I’ve had since college and I’m fixing to start wearing boots and lose my tan.  Guess that’s better than what I’d lose if I get snake bit!  🙁

You know what the nice lady at Tractor Supply said to me?  “I wouldn’t be wearing those flip flops in the garden because they’re snakeskin (faux I’m sure) and some male snake might think they’re a pretty female snake and wrap itself around your foot!”  She was just joking but . . she made the boot sale!

And, because my rain boots are too pretty for the garden, I ordered these.

And, we bought snake shot for the 22 pistol.  We have a 357 loaded with snake shot but Vince doesn’t want me using that one.  Don’t ask me why . . I don’t have a clue.

The flip flops are history for walking around in the yard.  Shorts are history.  It may be 120º outside but I’ll be the one with jeans, socks and boots!  Yes, a shirt too . . unless a grasshopper goes down it!  🙂

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Comments

  1. I really enjoy reading your blog and was thinking how wonderful it would be to have the garden, the cows next door and everything and then you mentioned the snakes!!! We often joked at my house that if I saw a snake my hubby would come home and see a for sale sign in the front yard!

  2. HA! First thing I asked for when we moved to the “farm” were some rubber boots that I could just pull on for wet weather and walking up the hill to check on the chickens and bunnies! They are a dull mud brown color, but I plan on making some liners that fold over the top to add a little cuteness to them. When I get it done I will take a photo… if I ever get it done!

  4. LOL – I kinda wondered re the flip flops and shorts! We wore jeans and if not boots – then fairly heavy shoes (mostly because I drop things on my feet!)

    I used to live in IL – and we had timber rattlers (a big ol’ grandaddy used to sun himself down on a sandbar in the dried out creek every summer – Ugh!) We also had water moccasins (which is why I don’t swim in private ponds) and worst of all – copperheads – including the largest one in the state of IL.

    The largest copperhead snake dead now – a neighbour took care of him after I called him to bring his shotgun and wipe out the blasted thing. Snake wasn’t going anywhere – my daughter had inadvertently carried it out in the midst of a bale of hay to feed the goats – that’s when the snake woke up.

    My daughter then had heard goats will kill snakes. This is not true!!! They snorted and walked off. So – being in junior high – she did the only things possible (other than run screaming for mom! – that came later!) She tried to DROWN the snake – picked up the entire water tub and upended it over the snake – who by this time was NOT happy! Then she decided that wasn’t working so she tried to beat it to death (so it wouldn’t hurt the goats or goat kids) – using a forked stick. Stick stuck in the ground – astraddle the snake’s head.

    By now the snake had been awakened from a mid afternoon snooze, thrown down in a strange place, nearly drowned, clobbered with a stick, and was now STUCK with a really strong forked stick! Snake was MAD!!!!

    So – W. did the only thing left – she ran yelling for mom (me!) – whose intelligent replies consisted of – did it bite you? Let me see if it bit you! Are you SURE it didn’t bite you – and who nearly passed out when she (me) saw the snake – and calmly, cooly, VERY palely walked back to the house, quizzed W. all over again and called the neighbour to bring his shotgun (neighbour said copperheads were NOT indigenous to this area! Not true!!! Obviously!!!) and that was that!!!

    Daughter is STILL VERY nervous around snakes – not that I blame her!

    • If that doesn’t get the juices flowing in the morning–nothing will! I had orange juice spurting out my nose and haven’t even had any OJ yet! Helen, Irma Bombeck would’ve loved you!

  5. I love the new boots – too funny about what the lady said about your flip flops. She’s a smart saleslady for sure! 🙂 I think you should make a blue and brown quilt maybe of cowboy boots? for the new grand baby?? Imagine the fancy quilt stitches you could put in the blue areas with brown thread? 🙂

    oh – and in case you get an itch for lime green boots I posted a link on your fb wall…. and then just now found these ostrich leather boots that are lime green 😉 http://www.ebay.com/itm/FAB-Corral-Lime-Green-Black-Genuine-Ostrich-Western-Cowboy-Boots-Wms-8-5-RARE-/261024237506?pt=US_Women_s_Shoes&hash=item3cc641c7c2

    Love from Indiana,
    Bonnie

  6. WOW – I am getting educated about snakes! I hope I never have to encounter one!

    Judy, I love your boots – old ones, new news – ALL OF THEM!

    You are having so much fun – and WE are having fun hearing about your adventures!

    sao in Midlothian, VA

  7. I know you love Texas… and for good reasons.. but having to do my gardening in boots and jeans… would turn gardening from a joy to a chore..

  8. Jeans and socks pulled up over them are for me! Have you encountered the Texas chiggers? I can’t go in the backyard without them taking a juicy bite… The heat last summer kept them underground and I must admit they don’t seem to be so bad this year….so far. Having said that I’ll probably pick up a few bites this afternoon!

  10. Cute boots, especially the rain boots! By the way, a 357 would knock you on your fanny!

    • I’ve shot the 357 enough to know the punch it carries. I’d rather shoot it any day than the 38 special. I think since the 357 is bigger, I’m expecting it but with that little 38, I can hardly bring myself to pull the trigger because I know what’s coming. I’ll take the 357 any day over the 38 but the 22 will definitely be easier to carry and easier to shoot, though my preference is still the full size 9 mm.

  11. Your boot tales reminded me of what a friend from Arizona told me years ago. She said you never put on shoes without turning them upside down and shaking them because the scorpions and spiders would crawl inside them. She said they would certainly get in any shoes left outside.

    • We learned that trick when we moved to KY about 15 years ago. We had brown recluse spiders and we all got in the habit of shaking out the shoes before putting them on.

  12. I agree with Dana about the 357. A 22 pistol is easier to carry and won’t have the kick. Afterall, you wouldn’t want to miss and be on the ground looking at a mad snake..

    Now, when are you going to show us your holster for the 22? And the hat?

    • Part of my reasoning for preferring the 357 is that you never know what you’re going to encounter out here. I’m pretty far from other folks so anything that comes up, I’d have to deal with it myself and I feel a whole lot better with the 357 than with the 22.

      • My husband’s 357 has a 2 lb trigger. I’ve shot it several times, but with that light trigger, it is very easy for it to go off before I am ready for it to do so. Almost shot my toe when we lived in KS instead of the coyote that was coming down the driveway! (well not quite that bad LOL ). However, the bullet landed in the dirt several feet in front of the coyote. He took off! We used the 22 with snake shot for the copperheads down at the creek. I used the bigger shotgun if I was out in the bush or if I had a bigger snake come up to the house. Poor black snake! LOL

  13. When we lived in Taiwan we knew we would be dealing with a lot of snakes. We lived on one mountain while friends were across on another-one guy killed 17 in his house one year. he told DH he kept boots by his bed so he would put them on in the middle of the night. The response was :1-don;t you think a snake will crawl in your boot: 2- he told his boss who was in on this conservation-my wife and I will be at the hotel if that happens. Our yard boy always had snake powder around the yard and the only time our yardboy saw a snake was when our neighbor below us built a pool at the bottom or our retaining wall and we had a minor landslide. then the cobras were out! But we never took any flower pots in the house without checking them out first. Now back here-last year our lawn guys killed a 6 ft. rattler outside by the front door with the weed wacker. Sometime I’ll have to tell you the 501 use for duck tape that our friend discovered during a typhoon!

  14. Oh those boots are great! I love brown and turquoise together. Very pretty, and very useful too. Got to cover up for summer Judy, we don’t want to have to send the tanorexia police after you! I’m still cringing at the face of that lady who supposedly took her little milky-skinned red-haired daughter into the tan bed with her. Makes me want to cover-up every chance I get!

  15. Judy, I decided when I turned 70, I would buy a new pair of cowboy boots each year on my Birthday. So far I have 3 pair and I wear them all winter to Church and whereever i go. Since I do not live on a farm/ranch or in Texas, sandals are for the summer.
    Like yours, may try for lime green next

  16. Love the boots! They remind me of fancy fry boots, which I wore ALL the time as a kid, back then they were $50 a pair! So, I could handle a pair of boos like that, with my orthotics, and insoles and….

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