Garter Snakes -1 Frances -5

Something I really enjoy doing is lawn work, namely mowing the lawn. There is something about the straight, clean lines and the smell of a freshly mowed lawn....it entrances me. When Drew and I moved into our current home, we became aware of the pronounced "snake problem" in the neighborhood. We found a nest in the corner of our garage and immediately had to deal with the snakes. (Well, Drew dealt with them!) Then, last summer I was mowing and I saw the grand-daddy of all Garter snakes (At least, that was what it looked like to me.) and I decided I needed to run over the snake. As I closed my eyes and hurriedly mowed over, I heard the distinct sound of a snake hitting the inside of the mower. *Thwump* (Come on, you all know that sound!) Then I felt something hit my hair. I put my hand on my head, only to realize snake bits had gone flying and landed on me! I let go of the lawn mower and sped inside to remove all the snake bits from my hair. From that moment one, I declared war on the Garter snakes in my lawn. I hadn't seen many this summer, until yesterday. I saw 6, got 5. One lucky snake got away to the safety of the neighbor's fence. Until next time, Mr. Snake.