'Calvin' ,The Frog......
Meets The 'Coach-Whip Snake !
It Is A Good Thing For Calvin The Toad Frog
That My Father Taught Me How To Pop A Whip.
You See, Calvin Is Our Family Toad Frog.
We Are Not Sure If Calvin Is A Boy, Or A Girl Frog,
How-Ever, Calvin Is Definitely A Big Toad Frog,
And Has Been Around Here Since We Moved In.
We See Calvin Mostly At Odd Times,
When-Ever He Feels Non-Private,
And Decides To Share Company With Us.
Calvin Is A Shocking Sight When You Aren't Expecting Him!
You See,... By No Stretch Of The Imagination
Can Any Body Except Another Toad Frog
Or A Coach-Whip Snake
Call Calvin Pretty.
Coach-Whip Snakes Live Here In Little River, Too
They Grow Really Fast And Very Very Lengthy.
We're Talking Really Long Here,
That Is Why They Are Called, "Coach-Whips".
The Particular Coach-Whip Snake Who Took A Liking To Calvin
Was Right At .....Nine Feet Long,.....
That Is Three Yard Sticks Laid End To End!
That Too Is A Shocking Sight To Walk Up On....Wow!
I Had Caught Glimpses Of The Coach-Whip Snake
Climbing The Trees In Our Neighbors Yard,
By His Barn. Coach-Whips Love Eggs,
And Birds In General.
It Is My "Policy" In General, To Take No "Offence"
Towards Non Poisonous Snakes Unless They
Come To Be A Nuisance Or Begin To Crowd Me.
So, I Paid The Neighbors Coach-Whip Snake No Mind.
Now, I Did Tell Our Neighbor About The Snake.
He Said He Had Seen It Too, And Was 'Ok' With It,
As He Felt It Kept The Rat Population In Check.
[Our Neighbor Being Of The Same Mind As Me,Or Close]
It Had Probably Grown Longer Since Our Neighbor Had Seen It.
Mr. Coach-Whip Had Definitely Noticed Calvin The Toad Frog,
And Had No Real Problem With Calvins' Lack Of Good Looks.
Matter Of Fact, Mr Whip Crossed The Fence
To Have A Closer Look, And Practice Its 'Snake Charm'.
Many Critters Freeze And Stop Moving When A Snake Approaches.
They Just Do, Don't Know Exactly Why, They Just Do.
Obviously, Calvin Did.
It Was A "Mis-Take" On Calvins Part.
A Toad Frog As Big As Calvin, With A Deep Hole
Under Our Home, And An Ugly Countenance,
And Dis-Tasteful Gooze On Its' Back
Did Not Fear Our Cat, Our Dog, Or Us.
Calvin Should Have Feared Mr. Coach-Whip.
At Nine Feet In Length, Remember,
And With Jaws That 'Un-Hinge',
Mr. Whip Is Awesomely Equipped To Take On Calvin.
As I Said At The Beginning Of This Tale, Lucky For Calvin,
I Grew Up In Rural Arkansas On A Farm As A Boy.
My Brother, Benjamin, And I
Had A Father That Was Fearless Of Snakes.
His Nick-Name Was "Cotton", Real Name Being "Roy Carlyle".
Obviously, He Had Many Experiences With Many Snakes,
Of Many Varieties, One Of Them Being A Coach-Whip.
Coach-Whips Grew In Arkansas, Too, On Our Place.
Ben And I Witnessed 'Daddy Cotton' Grab One By The Tail
That Was Swallowing A Charmed Bull-Frog,Swing It Fiercely
Around His Body And Head Like A Whip,
And Then, Pop It With A Strong Jerk,...
Kinda' Coach-Whip Like...See The Picture ?
Ben And I Watched The Bull-Frog Fly Out Of Mr. Whips Mouth,
And Bound Back Into The Creek, With A New Lease On Life.
Impressed We Were, So Impressed, We Talk Of It Still.
Now It Was Me And Calvins' Turn.....Lucky For Calvin.
Needless To Say, I Was A Bit Nervous, But Mr. Whip Crowded Me.
He Crossed The Fence. He Charmed A Friend Of Mine, Calvin.
He Was Wrapped All Around Calvin And Was
In The Process Of Swallowing Him. Not On My Watch!
I Moved Fast, Thinking Of No-Thing But How Daddy Did It.
Grabbed The Snake By What Looked Like The Tail,
And Found Mr Whip Longer And Stronger
Than I At First Anticipated,...He Had Really Grown.
I Guess The Diet Of Eggs And Rats And An Occasional Bird
Had Been Kind To Mr. Coach-Whip Snake,
However I Was Not In A Kind Mood, He Had Crossed Me.
As I Pulled His Tail And Long Slender Body
Into The Open Yard, He Held On To Calvin Securely,
He Obviously Was Very Attracted, Or Attached.
Now, Memory And Review Kicked In. Ben And I Often Went
Snake Hunting As Youths.
Our Attitude Was Snakes Should Fear Us.
This Was Before My Softer Tolerance For Their Breed.
I Gave Mr. Whip A Violent Shake, To Dis-Lodge Calvin,
Who Appeared To Be About Half Inside Mr Whips'
Un-Hinged Jaws, To No Avail.
Calvin Was In Trouble, And Shaking Wasn't Working.
So, I Did As I Visioned Daddy Cotton Doing,
Harnessing Strong Arm Muscles To Spin Around
Tightly Gripping The Flexing Snake,
Slinging It Fast And Using Centrifugal Force And Speed
To Keep Mr. Whip As Fully Extended As Possible.
Un-Wisely, He Still Did Not Release Calvin.
It Came Time For The ..."Coupe'-De'-Gras''...
As We Say In The Deep South.
A Power-Full--- Snap Of Strong Arm,
And Nine Foot Of A Too Aggressive Snakes Head
Snapped, Popped, And Crackled,...Ouch , Mr. Whip.
You Should Never Have Crossed The Fence,
Never Have Crowded Me,
Never Have Tried To Eat My Toad Frog Friend,
And Lastly, I Did Not Like Your Bad Manners.
Not A Good Neighbor You Were.
I Dug A Deep Hole With My Sharp-Shooter Shovel
And Buried Mr. Coach-Whip Snake In An Un-Marked Grave
To Return The Elements Of Eggs, Birds, And Rats
He Was Made From ,....Back To The Earth.
And Might I Add, Minus One Ugly Toad Frog
My Friend, Called,..Affectionally,..Calvin.
Calvin Is Ok Still Hanging Out By The Water Faucet,
And Winks At Me When I Walk By, In Appreciation.
That My Father Taught Me How To Pop A Whip.
You See, Calvin Is Our Family Toad Frog.
We Are Not Sure If Calvin Is A Boy, Or A Girl Frog,
How-Ever, Calvin Is Definitely A Big Toad Frog,
And Has Been Around Here Since We Moved In.
We See Calvin Mostly At Odd Times,
When-Ever He Feels Non-Private,
And Decides To Share Company With Us.
Calvin Is A Shocking Sight When You Aren't Expecting Him!
You See,... By No Stretch Of The Imagination
Can Any Body Except Another Toad Frog
Or A Coach-Whip Snake
Call Calvin Pretty.
Coach-Whip Snakes Live Here In Little River, Too
They Grow Really Fast And Very Very Lengthy.
We're Talking Really Long Here,
That Is Why They Are Called, "Coach-Whips".
The Particular Coach-Whip Snake Who Took A Liking To Calvin
Was Right At .....Nine Feet Long,.....
That Is Three Yard Sticks Laid End To End!
That Too Is A Shocking Sight To Walk Up On....Wow!
I Had Caught Glimpses Of The Coach-Whip Snake
Climbing The Trees In Our Neighbors Yard,
By His Barn. Coach-Whips Love Eggs,
And Birds In General.
It Is My "Policy" In General, To Take No "Offence"
Towards Non Poisonous Snakes Unless They
Come To Be A Nuisance Or Begin To Crowd Me.
So, I Paid The Neighbors Coach-Whip Snake No Mind.
Now, I Did Tell Our Neighbor About The Snake.
He Said He Had Seen It Too, And Was 'Ok' With It,
As He Felt It Kept The Rat Population In Check.
[Our Neighbor Being Of The Same Mind As Me,Or Close]
It Had Probably Grown Longer Since Our Neighbor Had Seen It.
Mr. Coach-Whip Had Definitely Noticed Calvin The Toad Frog,
And Had No Real Problem With Calvins' Lack Of Good Looks.
Matter Of Fact, Mr Whip Crossed The Fence
To Have A Closer Look, And Practice Its 'Snake Charm'.
Many Critters Freeze And Stop Moving When A Snake Approaches.
They Just Do, Don't Know Exactly Why, They Just Do.
Obviously, Calvin Did.
It Was A "Mis-Take" On Calvins Part.
A Toad Frog As Big As Calvin, With A Deep Hole
Under Our Home, And An Ugly Countenance,
And Dis-Tasteful Gooze On Its' Back
Did Not Fear Our Cat, Our Dog, Or Us.
Calvin Should Have Feared Mr. Coach-Whip.
At Nine Feet In Length, Remember,
And With Jaws That 'Un-Hinge',
Mr. Whip Is Awesomely Equipped To Take On Calvin.
As I Said At The Beginning Of This Tale, Lucky For Calvin,
I Grew Up In Rural Arkansas On A Farm As A Boy.
My Brother, Benjamin, And I
Had A Father That Was Fearless Of Snakes.
His Nick-Name Was "Cotton", Real Name Being "Roy Carlyle".
Obviously, He Had Many Experiences With Many Snakes,
Of Many Varieties, One Of Them Being A Coach-Whip.
Coach-Whips Grew In Arkansas, Too, On Our Place.
Ben And I Witnessed 'Daddy Cotton' Grab One By The Tail
That Was Swallowing A Charmed Bull-Frog,Swing It Fiercely
Around His Body And Head Like A Whip,
And Then, Pop It With A Strong Jerk,...
Kinda' Coach-Whip Like...See The Picture ?
Ben And I Watched The Bull-Frog Fly Out Of Mr. Whips Mouth,
And Bound Back Into The Creek, With A New Lease On Life.
Impressed We Were, So Impressed, We Talk Of It Still.
Now It Was Me And Calvins' Turn.....Lucky For Calvin.
Needless To Say, I Was A Bit Nervous, But Mr. Whip Crowded Me.
He Crossed The Fence. He Charmed A Friend Of Mine, Calvin.
He Was Wrapped All Around Calvin And Was
In The Process Of Swallowing Him. Not On My Watch!
I Moved Fast, Thinking Of No-Thing But How Daddy Did It.
Grabbed The Snake By What Looked Like The Tail,
And Found Mr Whip Longer And Stronger
Than I At First Anticipated,...He Had Really Grown.
I Guess The Diet Of Eggs And Rats And An Occasional Bird
Had Been Kind To Mr. Coach-Whip Snake,
However I Was Not In A Kind Mood, He Had Crossed Me.
As I Pulled His Tail And Long Slender Body
Into The Open Yard, He Held On To Calvin Securely,
He Obviously Was Very Attracted, Or Attached.
Now, Memory And Review Kicked In. Ben And I Often Went
Snake Hunting As Youths.
Our Attitude Was Snakes Should Fear Us.
This Was Before My Softer Tolerance For Their Breed.
I Gave Mr. Whip A Violent Shake, To Dis-Lodge Calvin,
Who Appeared To Be About Half Inside Mr Whips'
Un-Hinged Jaws, To No Avail.
Calvin Was In Trouble, And Shaking Wasn't Working.
So, I Did As I Visioned Daddy Cotton Doing,
Harnessing Strong Arm Muscles To Spin Around
Tightly Gripping The Flexing Snake,
Slinging It Fast And Using Centrifugal Force And Speed
To Keep Mr. Whip As Fully Extended As Possible.
Un-Wisely, He Still Did Not Release Calvin.
It Came Time For The ..."Coupe'-De'-Gras''...
As We Say In The Deep South.
A Power-Full--- Snap Of Strong Arm,
And Nine Foot Of A Too Aggressive Snakes Head
Snapped, Popped, And Crackled,...Ouch , Mr. Whip.
You Should Never Have Crossed The Fence,
Never Have Crowded Me,
Never Have Tried To Eat My Toad Frog Friend,
And Lastly, I Did Not Like Your Bad Manners.
Not A Good Neighbor You Were.
I Dug A Deep Hole With My Sharp-Shooter Shovel
And Buried Mr. Coach-Whip Snake In An Un-Marked Grave
To Return The Elements Of Eggs, Birds, And Rats
He Was Made From ,....Back To The Earth.
And Might I Add, Minus One Ugly Toad Frog
My Friend, Called,..Affectionally,..Calvin.
Calvin Is Ok Still Hanging Out By The Water Faucet,
And Winks At Me When I Walk By, In Appreciation.
