How To Handle A Snake Bite

There are Copperheads hiding around the places I hang out in Texas. It is not uncommon to hear stories about dogs being bitten and sometimes people.

I used to run into them on a semi consistent basis when I lived in my place in Grapevine. It was almost always when I would do my daily walk through the land next to it.

You can’t see the trail from the picture below but you can see the brush and bushes highlighted during one of the beautiful sunsets I used to see there.

It wasn’t uncommon for me to go there specifically to watch the day turn into night and to just think.

I haven’t lived there in about seven years now and though I have heard about their presence in my current town I think I have seen one for certain, though I have come across other snakes…until today.

Today I was doing a couple of things outside and as I turned and moved I heard something and felt something hit my leg.

There was a slight sting and for a moment I wondered if today was the day answering how to handle a snake bite would move from theoretical to a practical application.

I snorted because the younger Mr. Wilner was at work which meant it was just the dog and myself. The mutt is 14 and doesn’t know how to drive and certainly is the older dog who won’t learn a new trick.

If you read this post I think I outlined how I have driven myself to the ER and urgent care before so I was prepared to do it again. I am still a 55 year-old tank, I keep going but I figured before I got too deep into things I ought to figure out what happened.

So I went back inside the house and tried to confirm if I had been bitten. I didn’t see a bite mark which made me wonder if maybe I had been stung or bitten by something else.

But I took a moment to glance at this piece online to see if it said anything that would suggest the speed at which venom might impact me if at all.

I figured unless the venom contained a bunch of dairy I probably had a moment to check things out. Took another pass and didn’t see anything and figured it had to be an insect.

Don’t have any desire or need to find out what it is really like so I am ok with things as they are. But did remind me again of Don’t Waste Time You Can’t Get Back.

Not to mention I thought about the lyrics to מי שמאמין and snorted. I don’t know that I believe like that but if some of the soldiers are going into Gaza listening to it who knows. If you want the English translation you can find it here.

Anyhoo, hours later I am a little tired but I spent more time outside and some at the gym so it is not surprising to feel a little spent.

Bono On Audible

I am in the middle of listening to Bono’s autobiography on Audible which I am finding to be enjoyable and interesting. Some friends had recommended the book but with these autobiographies I like the Audible version because I get a chance to hear the artist tell their story.

Bono like Springsteen does a good job of making it conversational so it feels like you are sitting with them. It turns into a more intimate read.

I just finished the section where he speaks about One and had thought to provide a link to the video but I came across that live version and decided to embed it.

As a writer I have always appreciated the story told by those lyrics and the idea that this could be a conversation between people who once were and those who might still be.

Sometimes I come across questions online where people ask you to tell a story in three words. This song is one that always makes think of a few and how those three words can take you in so many different directions.

“I loved her.”

“Can I come home?”

“He is gone.”

“Death was victorious.”

Should You Have Been Kinder

I had words with someone who was surprised by the intensity I brought to the discussion as they have never seen that side of me.

“I am like a blunt hammer that smacks you in the mouth and then the throat followed by one more to the mouth huh.”

They caught my edge because of a repetition of things that never should have happened once.

They caught my edge because I have been involved in something that feels like I have been asked to walk through a field while people throw bowling balls and chain saws at me.

There  is no way to avoid getting hit so you know you will take a beating no matter what you do. I am built for the storm and am doing what I signed up for but it doesn’t mean that I need or want more.

Remember the snake story above?

I am certain I will survive being bit by a Copperhead. I am certain I haven’t been pushed to my physical limits and that I can go beyond wherever I think the end is.

That is not an exaggeration about my confidence in myself but I understand that I don’t need to do any of that to prove anything and that it takes longer to recover now.

So why do I want to work harder than I need to. Why do I want to get punched in the mouth or stabbed in the side when I don’t have to.

It hurts and I readily admit it so I try to avoid the moments when you get stuck with stupid crap. They caught my edge because they forced me to walk through the field multiple times.

After I had chewed on them for a bit and had time to think about it again I thought about that quote from Plato.

Thought about it and wondered if I could have gotten a better result by having been a little softer in my approach.

Didn’t come up with a solid answer but I’ll think on it some more and see if I feel differently. Life is one hell of a journey.