I was sweeping the kitchen when through the door came three bounding bundles of pure energy. With Sue Ellen leading the pack and sue right behind followed by a half pint mutt about the size of a house cat. They all came to a sliding screeching barking stop in between my feet and we all collapsed on the floor wagging barking yapping licking. About that time I heard the front door open and Dewayne saying they done got him treed in there. Dewayne said this here is Jo Ann my wife and this in Tammy sue the baby and I see you have met scrappy , kinda strange he has taken a liking to you he is not a friendly mutt about as cantankerous as they come and hates snakes too. I had told Dewayne about my phobia of snakes. Jo Ann was quite the looker and had a charming smile and startling green eyes and flaming red hair. She was just so beautiful you would never expect to find her barefoot in a sundress in the boonies. She shook my hand and said welcome to our little community. Then she ask if she could look around, sure help yourself and we all kinda walked through the house to every room, she said they just up and left one day and no one has heard or seen them since. They just left everything behind even their clothes were still there. Here is some big smith overalls I bet they will come close to fitting you and she held them up to me yep looks real close and shirts too and held one of them up. This weekend I will come over and help you get some of this stuff sorted out and I can do some laundry for you. I told them I was easy to please with clothes and stuff and told about our days on the red river with jack and our little cabin.

I was now holding the little mutt a light brown chihuahua, DeWine said he was so glad that we took a liking to each other as he was none too tolerant of the baby’s pulling and tugging on him, maybe he could stay and keep me company. He is really a grouchy little bastard he is just putting the charm on you now.

Back in the kitchen Jo Ann said all the canned goods were probably still good and there was plenty of pots and pans and dishes. It was all strown out into the yard and Dewayne said it was the coons they steal anything that shines and what they can’t eat they hide. He said they would probably stay away now that we had all been there and with Scrappy around the fearless snake dog. They said it was time to put the baby to bed so they left. DeWayne said he would be back in the morning and Jo Ann said she would see me the weekend.

Well little buddy lets see what we can find to eat out of a can. We settled on Pork-n-beans I ate the beans scrappy ate the little hot dogs. I had some crackers and immediately thought we need water and DeWayne said there was a creek behind the house so I got a big pot and headed out back to find the creek I climbed over the fence, which was alive just vines honeysuckle and Ivy. I soon found the little creek just a trickle but clear and cold I dug a hole with the pot the washed it out and held the pot under the trickle until it was almost full and set off for home.

When I climbed over the fence I could hear Scrappy barking. The weeds were higher than him so I just had to follow the sound to the corner of the house and there he was just a raising cane and just half a step before I stepped on it, I saw this long, ugly, black snake that was the attraction. I spilled the water dropped the pot and ran for a weapon, That is my story and I am sticking to it. Once I calmed down some I returned and found the snake gone but Scrappy was still barking and scratching trying to get under the house. Shit ! Just what I need now I got a snake and coons under my house.

I got the pot and headed back to the creek watching very careful for snakes and returned with some water. Scrappy was back in the kitchen so I got him a bowl and filled it and took the rest of the water into the bathroom and set the pot in the sink. then went to get the clean clothes. Then I found some soap and started getting cleaned up, not a hot bath but it felt pretty good considering. Then here came scrappy and went straight to the cabinet under the sink and set in barking. What the hell now. I eased the doors open just enough for Scrappy to get his head inside and he was still barking and I thought of the flash light Dewayne had left and went and got it, shining it in I could see nothing, so getting a little braver I got down on all fours and looked, still nothing, but Scrappy was not satisfied so I kinda crawled in so I could look up under the sink just to make sure. About then I glimpsed something out of the corner on my eye in the bottom corner a hole with something black and round going through it and Immediately thought… SNAKE!! at the same time something ice cold and wet prodded me on the butt… There was this big Explosion! A bright Flash of light then total darkness the world went silent.

                                                   To Be continued