Snakes and ladders

Did you know that nine out of the ten most venomous snakes in the World are peculiar to Australia? It’s true, as I was reminded by a TV show this evening. The show, another of those “How doctors save lives” series, informed me that the Aussie Brown snake does the most damage overall, because it tends to slither into back yards more often than the rest.
Now the funny thing is that I’ve only ever seen one snake “in the wild” as it were, despite having spent much of my childhood on a well grassed sheep-raising property, and most of the rest of it in a rural town that was blessed with the normal quantity and variety of serpent for the district.
Legendry Australian author/poet Henry Lawson made his mark with stories about the hard life in the “bush”, mostly during the “great depression”. He (and the generally more cheery “Banjo Patterson”) used gallons of ink to describe battling settlers, dogged drovers and brave, mostly lonely, bush wives. The wives – apart from raising kids, tending the cows – inevitably had to kill snakes every now and then, and they used shovels or guns for the job.
Lawson and Patterson, by the way, described in graphic detail the mountain of tragedy and travail that was the Australian inland in the “bad old days”, but didn’t neglect the well of comedy and irony that came with it. Sadly, I believe their work is seldom read, these days.
My “personal” snake was big (two meters or so as my memory suggests) wandered out of a bit of long grass onto a pathway at our home of 30 years or so ago. Was I brave and determined? Of course! In fact, not having a big shovel, a crowbar, or a gun, and believing that all living things have a purpose (and all that) I stood well clear. Friend snake went off without delay, and I wonder if he realised how lucky he’d been.
Ladders, by the way,probably cause more trouble and than snakes! I learned last night (on one of those ever-popping-up gardening shows) that ladders are more dangerous to home handymen than are chain saws or even nail guns. I used to be quite OK with ladders, but I treat them with increasing respect as the years continue to race by. But I’m fairly safe, as I’m no handyman at all – just ask my wife!
We watched another “Miss Marples” show tonight. Don’t worry though, my wife’s in no danger!