Nam called me up in a panic yesterday because she crossed paths with a snake in the yard of our house (in Thailand). She told me it was about a meter long and light green, and she asked what she should do so I said LEAVE IT ALONE, because all I could think of was:
Behold the awesome glory of the White-lipped Pitviper.
Of course, it might have been the Toothless Leaf-eating Snake of Northern Thailand, but I wasn’t about to ask her to see if its head was shaped like a diamond or not (and I’m sure Steve Irwin and Jeff Corwin would have agreed with that decision). Meanwhile, the snake decided to escape – up the storm drain of our house and onto the first story roof. Cool!
I told Nam to go get help, but just then a university kid happened to walk by, so he helped her somehow knock the snake off the roof and over the back wall into the adjoining forest. So all ended well, because I had heard before that Thais immediately kill any snakes that come near their homes, but Nam assures me that people in the Isaan region (where our house is) think it’s bad juju to wantonly kill shit, so they just try and get along with nature. That makes the Discovery Channeler in me so goddam happy to hear…
Thailand is not the best place for those squeamish about snakes and crawly things – a large portion of the cobra family (including the King Cobra), krait family (including the beautiful Red-headed Krait), as well as several kinds of waterbound and sea snakes can be found pretty much throughout the country.
Raising a family in Thailand // Documenting Issan food, culture, music, and people
Yes, bad juju but worse yet to get bitten by a venomous snake and deal with the consequences.
It’s a good tip to remember that if you do get bitten, to take the dead snake (yes, I said dead, ‘cuz you don’t want to get bitten twice trying to catch it!) to the hospital for proper identification. In any case, live long and prosper, Nam and Jus!
Oh, scary!
Once I was in Phuket, I woke up and found a huge centipede, sleeping just 2-3 inch away from my nose. I just screamed like #&#(‘)&%%$#”!. I told the hotel manager about it and she just laughed and said, “Oh, you are lucky, no bite, mai bpen raai!”
So, will you be keeping that cool scorpion that was in the 1st floor light fixture as a pet or setting him free into the back woods?
Dog vs. Lizard
Nam sent a series of her crazy weenie dog mix, Gen, going after a lizard in our yard in Mahasarakham. Note the wild beady eyes of a predator on the hunt. Can’t quite figure out who is attacking who in…