Along the shores of Lake Erie and its tributaries, there is a water snake that is not venomous but it has the magical power of making me crap my pants. I don’t like snakes, and these water snakes (scientific name: Bloomer Poopers) are nasty, slithering around like they own the place. I’m told they bite, but I have no plans of letting that happen.
When my uncle hand-crafted a sea wall with boulders, gravel and cement, we were drawn to the jumble of rocks as kids because it was a great place to throw sticks and stones into the water. But the joy of throwing rocks was always curtailed, for me, by the threat of those snakes.
I mentioned that my uncle’s health failed as he aged, and eventually he sold the cottage on Sandusky Bay to his younger brother. (Coincidentally, that brother was also my uncle, so the basic pronoun used in this story remains the same.)
Infusion of Capital
My uncle chose to have a proper sea wall installed. He also refurbished the cottage with modern amenities. Gone was the wood interior, in favor of drywall, carpeting, and tile. All of it was done over, and it turned out beautifully.
For a few years, it seemed the new sea wall was doing its job quite well. Further enhancements were made, replacing the gravel driveway with cement, and updating the landscaping with a new outdoor patio.
Snakes
When the carpenter tore apart an exterior wall to fix a sagging roof, he exposed a nest of those nasty black water snakes. I happened to be there that day, but luckily was not in the immediate vicinity.
I recognized the look of consternation on the carpenter’s face. The guy wore boots, gloves, and was swinging a hammer, but he wanted nothing to do with those snakes.
Construction was halted until the vipers made their way to someone else’s cottage.
Mother Nature Stops By
Soon, though, a new phenomenon arose of persistent winds out of the east. These sustained winds were so strong that the water of Lake Erie was pushed to the west.
Basically, the water by Buffalo got shoved up Monroe’s butt. And along the way, the water level in the Sandusky Bay rose, foot by foot.
As gusts of winds surged, waves crashed over the sea walls. These freakish events were sporadic, at first, but grew in strength and frequency. Soon, every spring was a time to worry about the rising waters, and whether or not the cottage be flooded.
Fall Back and Build Another Wall
As the saying goes, if one wall is good. Two walls will be better.
Earthen berms were constructed by my uncle and his neighbors, trying once again to keep the water away from the cottages. Sandbags were deployed to close any gaps.
The yards became lumpy and uneven, as a maze took shape around the cottages.
The Story For Now
Next week, I’ll tell you what happened next with the cottage and my uncle…
Meanwhile, at My Writing Desk…
I haven’t written anything new for my various novels. I had a brilliant idea for the one I’m about to start writing, but haven’t started typing yet.
What could I be doing that’s more important than writing? Publishing, of course.
Upcoming Books and Stuff
I’ve spent the past week publishing two books: Ruthless and Welcome to Willieville. They are both crime thrillers, but very different from each other.
In a couple of weeks, I’ll tell you about them in more detail as they’ll be ready to order, if you’re interested.
Maybe You’d Like
Here is a dystopian science fiction, like my own HIVE, called Abnormal:.
It has 26 ratings with an 4-star average (which I would kill for, by the way).
It’s about whether a genetic mutation is considerd a gift, or an abnormality. The wealth you’re born into is usually the deciding factor. Like any good, dystopian science fiction, being declared Abnormal means it’s time to stand up and fight.
Recommended Reading
I finished reading The Baron in the Trees by Italo Calvino. It’s a book I read 15 years ago and declared to be my favorite of all time. So I read it again, and the way I cried at the ending confirms I wasn’t wrong. It’s classified as fantasy, but it’s not fantastical. Set in the late 18th century, it’s an amazing novel of ideas, disguised as romance and family saga.
Next Picayune
I’ll finish the cottage story next week and I promise to wrap it up in some pithy way that makes this wait worthwhile.
Thanks for reading the Mickey Picayune
All the best,
–mickey
P.S.
Either way, if that’s your thing, grab a copy and let me know via a review what you think about it.