Saturday, November 24, 2018

the day and the day after


We had a warm and easy time with the family Thursday, lots of good food, the twins home from their respective colleges. I didn't take any pictures, though I intended to, except for these.



These are Kenyan sand boas, a male and female, that my grandson is keeping for his on again/off again girlfriend or ex-girlfriend, no one seems to know. They are very shy, wanting to burrow under something. The grandboy gave me one of the shed skins, so delicate and detailed.


I liked the shadow the scales made.

I had no plans for yesterday but because the weather was so nice I worked out in the yard some digging up more weeds and evening primrose from another section of the day lily flower bed 


as I have 2 six packs of lettuce to put in though it was still a little too wet to be digging after the rain the other night. Then I took the dog for a long walk and after that shelled more pecans (17 pounds shelled so far), and had a reprise of Thanksgiving dinner for dinner. Perhaps I'll get out there and do a little more digging today though I need to assemble everything over at the shop and start working on my display.

The ginkgo trees are finally starting to turn yellow after our two nights of freezing weather last week. For some reason I thought it would be an overnight change.






14 comments:

  1. I had never heard of a Kenyan sand boa. Pretty little things for sure.

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  2. I have a snake skin that I have saved and photographed. The symmetry and shadow are nice.

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  3. Oh my word. Laura would be right in there with you, handing snakes.

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  4. those snakes are beautiful indeed! Lucky you!

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  5. I find snake skins in my yard often. So far, I have not met it’s owner.

    So glad you had a nice Thanksgiving. I am still cleaning up after mine.

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  6. I always love that "second" Thanksgiving dinner. And the third, if it comes to that. I'm a huge fan of Thanksgiving leftovers. The snake and its skin are so interesting. I think I could hold that snake. How large do they get? I presume not as big as a boa constrictor, which is the only boa I've ever come across.

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    1. females about 24", males about 20". bottom picture is the female.

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  7. Seventeen pounds of pecans! Wow! The snakes are amazing, poor little shy things.

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  8. Such beautiful creatures. I wonder how long these shed skins will last. Do they crumble or shrivel up eventually?
    Never lived anywhere near snakes (no snakes in Ireland, only one poisenous one - not deadly, very rare and shy - in Germany and in Afriva we shared the hosue with harmless gekkoes and millipeds) and I don't really want to. Ever.

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  9. Thank you for sharing your lovely Thanksgiving weekend. I sure do enjoy your photos.

    We have harmless garden snakes here in the northwest corner of Washington State. It's been years since I've seen one, though, because I no longer live in a house with bushes that snakes loved to use to sun themselves. The last time I remember seeing a snake was while on a walk with a friend along the north shore of Lake Whatcom. That was years ago. The small snake had draped itself in the sunshine on a bush at the side of the lake. A sleepy dreamy snake, unlike the rattlesnakes we grew up fearing in the desert in Southern California. There are snakes, and there are snakes.

    Johnny Cash sang, "Bet he doesn't want to be called a snake."

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CTHkmwIOV0

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    1. I only encountered one little garden snake this year though we have many kinds. I usually catch sight of a rat snake or a coral snake but not this year. we have copperheads too and green ribbon snakes. and others I'm sure.

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  10. What lovely snakes - they are so small! How large do they grow? When I was a kid, I would hunt for snakeskins and had amassed a large and varied collection. Until my mother discovered them and threw them out. I am still holding it against her. The ginkgo tree has a wonderful shape. Will the leaves all rain down at the same time? I will have to see if they grow in my zone.

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    1. the females get about 24", the males about 20". the bottom picture is the female. the ginkgo is fully yellow today and yeah, the leaves pretty much fall all at once though some are drifting down now.

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  11. My camp worker is terrified of snakes, no matter the size. We had no family for Thanksgiving, just a bunch of misfits! Sixteen for dinner, all those who had nowhere to go showed up at my table(s). One of my campers smoked a lovely turkey the others all decided to bring pies. I did all the rest, but I really enjoy cooking for a crowd. I am always afraid there won't be enough and tend to go a little nuts, but no one ever leaves my table hungry!!

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