Page 130 - REALLY What A time Book IX

REALLY SO WHAT
What A Time

FAMILY OUTINGS

There were other animals that I liked, but bears and the seals
were the best. We would throw peanuts to the elephants,
watch the gangly Giraffes stalk around, their enclosure. Deer
took up lots of room. Each group had different horns or
antlers. They were probably all from Africa.

We always stopped to watch the Prairie Dog Town. They
liked to pop up from their holes look around and run to the
next hole. We’d often have lunch watching them or down at
the bottom of the Zoo beside the Seals.
We never visited the Zoo without an educational visit to the
reptile house. Like most of the enclosed animal houses it
stunk. But, we weren’t there to see the crocodiles, or lizards.
We were there for a specific reason; SNAKES, and we’d be
tested on it later. Pop’s lecture was always the same:

‘This is a Copperhead. Look at it’s body. It’s color is like autumn leaves.
It’s head is the shape of a triangle. This is a Rattlesnake. It head is also
triangular and it has rattles on it’s tail. When it’s up set it will start
shaking the rattles. Both of them are poisonous and if you come across one
in the woods get away from it. They will usually coil up before they
strike. Their bite will hurt.’
There was one other snake we’d be lectured about. It was a
Water Moccasin, a long black snake with a triangular head.
They liked water and we should keep our eyes out around the
docks, and shore line.

This lecture would repeat itself every time we went to the Zoo,
or camping, and often while camping. In all our years in the

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