Okay, since we're telling our stories of our "Close Encounters of the Slithering Kind" I'll share mine:
I came a hair's breath from being bitten once (nw of Tallahassee, Fl.). We had a cattle gate at our driveway which I would get out & open. I just knew 1 day there would be a rattler waiting there in the spot where I would stand after opening the gate. A 3' wide spot between the open gate & and an oak tree. DH liked to tease me by bumping the car forward as I was opening the gate & I told him 1 day there would be a rattler there where I would jump into the spot. I had such strong & prolonged premonitions that I developed an escape plan for such an event. My plan was this: I would jump on the rungs of the gate & from there be able to climb into the oak tree up high away from danger. It so happens that I broke my wrist 2 days before the incident & my arm was in a cast from fingers to elbow & still quite painful. Well, you guessed it. There he was, coiled & rattling, fat & 6' long. It was high summer so I had flip flops on & my toe landed 2" from his snout. My world both stood still & zoomed all at one time. I couldn't climb the gate with my arm. It's astounding how rapidly your brain works in these situations. They say we only use 10% of our brain but during that nanosecond I think every molecule in my brain was working. A million crystal clear thoughts & decisions went through my mind in the space of a heartbeat. I don't know how I did it but managed to pivot on my toe & with wings on my feet MOVED LIKE LIGHTNING! All I could think was that I needed to get beyond striking distance FAST. I could see in my minds eye, myself not getting far enough fast enough & the darned snake sinking his fangs into my BUTT as I am a short person. Then I thought, "how does one put a tourniquet on a butt? Not possible. Gotta get bit on the thigh so I can put a tourniquet on otherwise I won't make it to the hospital". I must have flown because I managed to get far enough away & get on the hood of the car without getting bitten. DH finally figured out what was happening (this took only seconds) & got the shotgun out of the car & dispatched the rattler.
An experience I hope never to repeat in my life.
But for a long time after it happened I swear I had PTSD from it. I realized it & forced myself to go out & sit in the yard. Each time getting closer & closer to the woods. At first the sound of cicadas made my mind warp into the rattlers buzz or the sound of a rainbird sprinkler would do it. But I faced my fear little by little & got over it.
That was a about 25 years ago. DH had not wanted to kill the rattler as it remained coiled & buzzing but it never did strike. But I had INSISTED. I think it was the right thing for me at the time but if it happened today I'm not sure I wouldn't let the snake go his own way.
