As you may remember, we experienced a flood of major proportions this spring. Part of our recovery process is clearing and burning debris piles in preparation for the summer fire season.

Here’s pile #2:

While working on this burn pile, I heard my dog, Jessie, start barking. She’s a Blue Healer. She barks at anything that moves–especially cars that she doesn’t recognize, but I could tell from her location on the mowed path between me and my house she wasn’t barking at a car. In fact, only one thing upsets her more than a strange car–a snake.

Since I already had my McLeod wilderness fire tool in hand (blade and rake combo works great to eradicate thistles), I hurried to lend a hand.

Sure enough. Big, angry snake, tail rattling in that very distinct, chilling sound. Twelve buttons. Coiled, but with its focus on the dog, it was no match for the McLeod.

I chopped off its head and carried it back to the fire. When I shared this photo with my son and daughter (their children walk this path every day), my son texted back: “You are one badass country mom.”

I HATE killing snakes, and I’m sure the flood and fire has many critters confused about where they belong, but we can’t take any chances with small children around. We did make a video of the snake’s body moving in the grass for my three-year old granddaughter to see. “This is what a rattlesnake looks like. This is the sound the rattles on its tail make. If you see or hear one, run away as fast as you can.”

Hopefully this is the last one we see this summer…oh, wait, it’s only April…well, I think I’ll keep my McLeod handy, just in case.

Do you have dangerous creatures where you live? Have you ever had to kill one?

Deb

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PS: In case you don’t get my newsletter, my READ4LESS mailing just went out and I have a special Mother’s Day bargain book that hasn’t been on sale before. BLACK HILLS WHITE KNIGHT is just 99¢ until May 15.

Good Friday morning!

Something new today. I’ve been blogging on Fridays at a group blog called Storybroads for a couple of years, but the blog is undergoing some changes and I’m not sure how things will pan out, so today I’m testing something new. I’m calling it:

Finally, Friday! A catch-all blog with an eye on the weekend!

I hope it will be mostly fun, often frivolous, sometimes serious and somewhat meaningful.

Today, I need to tell you something IMPORTANT.

We’ve all seen the headlines, watched the award shows, maybe even added a #MeToo hashtag or two to our tweets and Facebook posts. But have you talked to your daughters or granddaughters about what is happening in the world today?

This morning, my ten-year old granddaughter came to my house for a ride to school. She is the sweetest child I know, with a kind spirit and open heart. She’s also a gymnast.

Coincidentally, a segment about the USAGymnastics sexual abuse scandal and the sentencing of a beast whose name I refuse to type had just ended, so I asked her if she’d heard about what had happened to some of her favorite role models.

She shook her head.

“Well, we should talk about this because a number of girls–including Simone Biles, Gabby Douglas and Aly Raisman….remember watching them win medals at the Olympics and then you went to San Jose to see them on tour?” She nodded, her full attention on the fate of her heroes. “…they came forward to accuse the team doctor of sexually abusing them.”

“Really?” she asked. “Did they get kicked off the team?”

My heart stopped for a minute and I had to fight back tears. “No, my darling. They didn’t get in trouble. They were very brave and they told the truth. Now, that doctor will spend the rest of his life in jail.”

“A doctor? Really?”

I explained to her how a person in power could make you think you wouldn’t be believed if you tried to tell someone what he or she did to you–even if you knew what they did was wrong or made you feel uncomfortable or bad. “It’s your right–even your responsibility–to tell someone so that person doesn’t do the same thing to other girls.”

What I didn’t tell her is how long it took for the world to hear what many of this monster’s victims had reported over the years. Here’s an interesting article on the subject. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/25/us/the-metoo-moment-for-us-gymnasts-olympics-nassar-justice.html

I particularly like this line from that article:

In the courtroom in Michigan, the assistant attorney general, Angela Povilaitis, said: “We teach our girls and daughters to be too nice. To just ignore and put up with uncomfortable situations, to stay silent when they should be allowed to be heard.”

The women of gymnastics are no longer staying silent.

Don’t we owe it to the next generation of girls to teach them to speak up and never let the manipulators come between you and what you know is right?

What do you think? I’d love hear from you.

On a lighter note, my READ4LESS newsletter is going out tomorrow with some FABULOUS free or 99¢ bargain books from some amazing authors. (I’m also including links to my newly published Black Hills Rendezvous Boxed Sets Volumes 2 and 3.) Separately, you’d pay $11.97, so at $8.99, you’re saving 25% off the retail price.

Have a fabulous weekend, my friends. I’m always open to blog ideas. Feel free to email me.

Deb