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Re: [RC] [RC] [RC] Snakes - Howard Bramhall

OK, Truman, you've gone and done it now. I'm gonna dig out one of my Air Force stories. Don't tell them much on here, cause, as we all know, horses don't fly jets. At least not yet.

I was 20 years old, at my first Air Force base name of Williams out there in Arizona (about 20 miles east of Phoenix). I was a radar air traffic controller. Williams had this remote location, named Rittenhouse (I have no idea why it was called that) with a mobile Ground Control Approach radar system, deep into the desert. This place had a large, air conditioned trailer, with kitchen, TV, the works, where we air traffic controllers would spend most of our time playing cards (poker, with chips, debts to be paid next payday) while waiting for a T-38 to come and do a precision radar practice approach.

The radar trailer was kind of connected to the one we spent our free time in (most of our time at
Rittenhouse was free time) kind of like different train cars which make up a train. We called the radar approach a practice one, because this approach one a pilot will request in bad weather. OUr weather limits were for this service were down to 1/4 mile visibility and a 100 foot ceiling. Normal weather in that part of Arizona is 80 miles visibility with not a cloud in the sky. Let's just say, we played a lot more cards out there in the desert than we did controlling airplanes.

IN addition to the air traffic controllers, there were also 3 or 4 radar maintenance folks hanging around in case anything broke down. They usually made up the 7 total needed at the card table for a lively game. The radar technicians weren't all that busy either. The one thing I forgot to tell ya'll is we had no indoor plumbing in that trailer. WE had a for real outhouse when nature called. NOt sure why we didn't have any running water, but, hey, we are out there in the desert, so, that's probably the reason. I do remember this WAter buffalo thing that supplied us with drinking water. Keep in mind this is all 30 years ago for me, so, I might be off a little in the memory department.

So, one day, one of the radar maintenance guys is out there in the Out house (I'm sure it had a name but I can't remember), let's just call it the Rittenhouse Dump, and that's what this fellow was doing. I was outside washing my car using up some of that valuable water from the Water Buffalo (big ole tank holding a thousand gallons or so. Well, maybe not that much). I hear an incredibly loud scream coming out of the Rittenhouse Dump, the Radar guy comes flying out of the outhouse with his pants down, running as fast as he possibly can, and behind him from the back of his butt trails an entire role of toilet paper. He doesn't stop running till after 30 yards or so. He was so scared and yelling at the top of his lungs it must have taken me 3 seconds before I started laughing. 6 or so men come running out of the trailer to see what all the commotion is about and, after looking at the guy with his pants down, the toilet paper going from the guy's behind back to the outhouse, looking at me with the hose in my hand, assumptions were made, and the laughter just got to the point I thought I was now the brunt of this joke.

Turned out to be a rattle snake in the recepticle part of the outhouse. I'll never forget it. Saw more rattle snakes in Arizona than any other creature during the years I spent there but that was how I saw my first one. All I remember is one of the sergeants had a small caliber gun (22 I think) and we somehow got the snake out of the outhouse. It coiled, and the SGT. just aimed at it. As he was doing this (he'd obviously done this before) he said, "The snake will align itself to the gun. You don't really have to take aim, the snake does all the work for you." And, bang, he blew that snake's head right off from the rest of it's body.

OUt of all of these fellows from that Rittenhouse Radar Site, I was the only one who hadn't been to Vietnam. Not sure why that's important, but, I do remember that. I never did go because the war ended real soon after my first 2 years in the Air Force. I felt priviliged to be around those men then and those memories will stick with me till the day I die.

cya,
Howard (the snake killer)


From: Truman Prevatt <tprevatt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: Howard Bramhall <howard9732@xxxxxxx>
CC: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: [RC]   [RC] Snakes
Date: Sun, 11 Apr 2004 18:57:24 -0400

With the cotton mouth it is you or them. They are extremely territorial and will come after you. When I was a teen my cousin and I were sitting in this nice lake bass fishing in a John boat. This was up in on the border of Western TN and KY near LBL. This cotton mouth swims out of the cat tails and we think nothing of it. He keeps coming for out boat. We finally got concerned when that sapsucker started to try to get into our boat - showing us why he is called a cotton mouth. My cousin whacked him with the oar and stunned him and I finished him off with the trusty 38 I always took fishing with me.

I've never heard of a horse getting bit by a moccasin but I expect it could easily happen. I'm always a bit concerned about the swamps.

BTW I don't know about bath tubs but in the Sarasota paper a couple years ago it reported a moccasin coming up through the toilet. Makes one thing about sitting before looking. They also seem to like to get into peoples swimming pools. More that one person has dove into his pool for a nightly skinny dip to come eye-ball-to-eye-ball with a moccasin.

Truman

Howard Bramhall wrote:

Every time I see Steve Irwin on TV I'm rooting for the Croc. Normally, Tracy, I'd agree with you, when it comes to respecting nature and all. But, if you've ever run into a water moccasin down here (aka cottonmouth) you might think otherwise. They hide underwater, like submarines, and when they surface (usually when you're halfway into a swamp crossing while riding your horse) right by your left leg you'll understand the need to kill or be killed. These things are the most aggressive snakes around and they will come after you. Just for fun.

I had a cat that was bit by one of these things. Spent over 500 bucks at the midnight animal hospital trying to save my cat, "Jax." Anti-venom is incredibly expensive. His poor leg swelled up like a balloon and it got so bad the vet had to put him down. Ever since then, because of Jax and, maybe, that 500 bucks, if I find a cotton mouth out on the trail or near my place I will take him out (and, not out for dinner).

I've known some neighbors who have had run ins with these vipers and their horses. Once the horse is bitten, if it's lucky enough to survive, it's never the same. The area near the bite swells up and after awhile the skin starts to slough off. The smell of the skin in that area is the smell of death because that part of the horse's body is literally dead.

So, in the name of my dead cat Jax and the safety of the horses around here I kill Cotton Mouths. Haven't had to do it lately since we haven't had much rain since last summer. Plus, the city of Ormond Beach is running out of water so they've decided to tap into the swamp where I go riding and are using it for drinking water. The way Florida is growing swamps will soon be a thing of the past. I wonder if it's possible to have a cotton mouth come out of your water spicket while taking a warm, comfortable bath?

cya,
Howard


--

We imitate our masters only because we are not yet masters ourselves, and only

because in doing so we learn the truth about what cannot be imitated.




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