Snakes on a Plane (or a classroom)

I celebrated my birthday today with Liz, Lauren, Frankie, Shannon, Case, Siahna, several other co-workers, and a....snake! Yep, another snake was in the school today, and it was too close to home.

The last snake was a rattlesnake, but it was (in the perspective of a neighborhood) about five houses down the block from my classroom. Way too close for comfort, and it caused a great amount of anxiety in my body, but I survived.

(I still watch the ground and watch for snakes wherever I go).

Today, I enjoyed lunch with my friend, Lauren, a 1/4 mile (literally) from my own room. After great conversations, presents, and dessert, I wandered back to my room. Upon arrival, my friend Liz was in the hallway blocking the way to my room. There were also about 15 students hanging out, two teachers, two assistant principals, and the head principal.

Liz quickly grabbed my shoulders and said, "Shiloh, I have something to tell you. You can't go in there. Don't freak out."

Well, too late. I was already freaking out. Why, I didn't know, but I was.

Liz continued, "There's a snake in Audrey's room." (In neighborhood terms, Audrey is not only my neighbor, but she's in the apartment less than three feet away from my front door). So in other words, there's a snake practically in my room. (I can read between the lines).

I was definitely freaking out now. And to make matters worse, Liz continued, "They can't find the snake. As the kids fled the room, the snake disappeared. They have been in there for 50 minutes looking for it, but it could be anywhere right now." She also said she volunteered to break the news because she knows of my hatred of snakes.

I almost resigned on the spot.

To make a long story short, I made it into my classroom and found a spot on a chair with my feet off the ground. (They are lucky I made it that far into my classroom). That's from where I taught my class. The kids sang happy birthday. We had a cupcake to celebrate. Kids asked to get a drink. I said yes. Three kids left my room. As they opened my door into the hallway, they all screamed.

"Ms. Nichols, the snake is in the hallway. Wait, now it's going into the classroom. Quick, do something."

The most they got out of me was a call to the front office. "Please get a janitor down here NOW," I demanded.

The janitor came. A math teacher used a golf club to corral the snake. They caught the snake. They released the snake outside.

I stayed on my chair with my feet off the ground, and I can guarantee I will never set foot in Audrey's classroom again!