SpawnPoint

It always sucks to move from the work week and get sick over the weekend.  It is worse when you have an unsypathetic wife,3 kids and a very busy schedule of events that really DON'T care how you feel.

So, saturday morning starts with vertical upheaval of previously consumed foods. Fun.  This happens a few times.

Saturday night has a whole new flavor of issues.  Previously consumed foods decide to come out of other orifices in the same viscous format as before.. just more different ways.  While I am akin to not sleeping much, I hate TRYING to sleep.. and not doing so until 6am because of aforementioned problems.

Ok - So the spouse lets me sleep till 10am.  Thanks.

The rest of the day is much the same until the afternoon when I am feeling better and about 10lbs lighter.  I decide to do some of my normal weekend chores.  Cleaning the garage, cleaning the pool deck, etc. I have this box of.. well.. miscellaneous toy crap that my kids never use in an old cardboard box.  Time to sort and toss this stuff. 

Hand into box. Pull some toys out. Throw in trash or plastic bag for later examination.

Hand in box. Same thing.

Repeat.

Hand in box. OOh! Something different! Hand comes away with two drops of blood and a sharp pain.  Oh, there is the lovely low-pitch but fast cascade of wasps/bees that is sadly, distinctly not wasps or bees.  Out of the box shoots this Pygmy Rattler. WACK WACK WACK.. Goes for the toes (in flip flops. so this is a danger).

Lets stop here.

For those not accustomed to snakes in their lives, this sounds like a scary experience.

For those who ARE accustomed to snakes in their lives.. well.. this is still a scary experience! 

Back to the action.

In 4 seconds or less the situation has been assessed. I have been bitten (again) by a Pygmy Rattler. From previous experiences, I know that this is not fatal but I also know that in about 2 minutes my life is going to change as pain starts to setin from the poison that is necronious (eats away the flesh).  I have 2 little kids in the pool behind me obvlivious to the events.  I have not examined this box further to know if there are MORE snakes in there (when you find one... well.. you tend to find more then one).  

Hammer is on a table 20 feet away. Kids are 30 feet away.  Hammer is grabbed. Hammer pounds on snake head 3 times.  Snake smooshed.

Kids are wooshed out of the water, towels on body and shoved into the house.  Hand is held down to prevent spreading of poison. Drip drip... blood on patio. Wife summoned to take kids away.  Haven't told her what happened but she see's the blood and is concerned.  March back out  - kick the boxes. No snakes come flying out, I am pretty certain none are there.

Back in house.  Here is the dialogue. (Wife is drying kids).

Shane holding finger down, squeezing in a semi tourniquette. Says to wife: "Got bit by a Pygmy Rattler. No I won't die.  Need to rinse wound off and check."

Wife: "Again?"

Shane: "Shutup. "

Wife: "Want me to call 9-11?"
- Wife goes ahead and calls a friend to come to the house who lives down the street to watch the kids just in case.

Shane: "Not yet. No rush. "
- sink runs, revealing to small puncture holes. A little swelling. Nothing else.  Water still running (Warm water - cold water doesn't help.. in fact.. tends to make it worse).

5 minutes passes and I am not screaming for my mommy. Last time I got bit by a Pygmy Rattler I was screaming for Jesus, Jebus, God, Satan, the Earth Mother, and for morphine (I am a wuss).  I had anti-venom applied to the wound and my little toe survived the ordeal.  No pain this time.  I know that - some - percentage of bites are 'dry'. re: no venom.  

GOOGLE - is your friend.  An estimated 25-40% of Pygmy Rattle bites are dry.  I got lucky today and saved the $50 co-pay at the emergency room!

End result - I still feel crappy. Freaked the kids out.  Had to empty all my boxes and clean stuff up.  Oh. And I still feel crappy.
-
Shane

Wayetender @ 2007-09-16 16:57:13
What did you do with the snake corpse? Send it to me, I can make it into an excellent stew.

Nikki @ 2007-09-16 17:16:51
Wow - sounds like you've had a rough weekend. Glad you came through relatively unscathed.

weaver @ 2007-09-16 18:50:48
I've had snake stew before. This would not make for much though.

Raven @ 2007-09-17 06:34:58
wow and i thought i felt bad over the weekend.

I'm off through Neuralgia brought on by a damn migrane.

No chance of being bitten or my flesh falling off me though LOL

Hope we both feel better soon.

weaver @ 2007-09-17 08:53:42
This is an overall xxxxty weekend. Clan member daughter dies. Snake bite. Another clan member friend gets his by a car and is in ICU. When it rains...

SaPpHiRe @ 2007-09-17 10:23:05
I'm sorry to hear that you've had such a rough weekend :(

lol but holy epic blog post <3

HitMan @ 2007-09-17 16:08:54
damn man!!! its nice to see im not the only one with back luck and as negitivity comes in three's lets hope all of these are counted and we can move forward without any more stumbling for a while.

weaver @ 2007-09-17 16:16:12
I like the fact that 228 people have read my blog so far today ;)

Atrus @ 2007-09-19 08:34:21
Whoa... what a day! Looking on the bright side if someone was going to be bitten I suspect you're very happy that it was your hand in the box of toys, and not one of the children or the wife. Hang in there dude, life is good.