Category Archives: Critters

Serpentine

Posted on May 12, 2011 by sputterpub

     When I was around 7 years old, I had my first acquaintance with rattlesnakes. There were two boys named John in the neighborhood that extended around us, and the fat one’s dad raised snakes for venom. Mostly we played … Continue reading →

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Stupid Pets

Posted on February 24, 2011 by sputterpub

   When I was 5 they gave me the turtle. I don’t remember asking for one. I didn’t name it Myrtle (that was Mom: “Here. Meet Myrtle the Turtle”). I associate the creature’s presence with my terrible tonsillectomy but I also … Continue reading →

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Albert

Posted on January 24, 2011 by sputterpub

     When I was almost 15, my next door neighbor gave me a kitten. My mother was not into pets but Dad prevailed earlier that year, and the family acquired a beagle we named Becky. Mom wouldn’t let Becky the … Continue reading →

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Snail Trail

Posted on January 12, 2011 by sputterpub

  When I was 48, one morning I killed 48 snails. Normally I’m non-violent. I wince at even the mention of cruelty to a bird or mammal, and I don’t eat their meat (but that was a decision first made by … Continue reading →

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Queen of the Dog Park

Posted on November 23, 2010 by sputterpub

     When I was 41 I took on my last dog. I’d already loved Becky-the-beagle and Ajax and Jack and Ajax again (he lived long and with most of us), but Shelby was the first companion I acquired on my … Continue reading →

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Riding

Posted on September 21, 2010 by sputterpub

When I was around 11, my parents signed me up for horseback riding lessons. I don’t know whose idea it was, but I was eager for them. My brother Steve was enrolled too, with or shortly after me, but he … Continue reading →

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