snakes

The massive fire that took place at Grand Bear Resort in Illinois on Memorial Day left more than destruction behind, now there could be a huge snake on the loose!

If you guessed "the two-legged kind," you would technically be correct. We humans pose a lot more danger to each other than animals do, but we're talking about four legs (mostly), fur (sometimes), and fangs here.

Sure, it's all fun, games, bunnies, and eggs--until a large snake peeks out of your toilet.

The snake spotted slithering through the brush has yet to be identified. This is the kind of stuff that shows up in my nightmares.

We've often talked about how this part of Illinois is somewhat lacking in venom-dripping creepy-crawlies that would like nothing more than to bite you. Sure, our state does have venomous snakes, but we're the minor leagues compared to our friends in Australia.

My mother-in-law lives in Arizona, and she would frequently regale us with stories of the myriad of creepy-crawlies and deadly creatures that share her part of the world. I've heard tales of scorpions in shoes ("Just shake the shoe before you put it on, no big deal"), black widow spiders lurking in cabinets and closets, and diamondback rattlesnakes all over the place...

It's not just us humans who can use a refreshing dip now and then.

The guy above, Indiana Jones, is not a fan of snakes, as you may know from watching the films. I mean, he would deal with them, but not for fun. Indy needed a reason, like treasures, or the lost ark of the covenant, not just because he had a cool GoPro camera and thought some rattlesnake video might be YouTube post-worthy...

As noted wordsmith Samuel L. Jackson once said, "I'm tired of these monkey-fighting snakes on this Monday to Friday plane!" I'm told the un-edited, not-for-TV version had a slightly different line being uttered, but I just can't imagine what it might have been...