Meet my friend Slim. Well were not real tight like most friends I have. We don’t see each other often which is the arrangement we agreed upon. Maybe 2-3 times between spring and fall. And he is never welcome around when the wife is home. I’d prefer he would also stay away from my children and dog when they visit.

I first saw Slim when he was a young’in. He was full of vim and vigor back then and would rise to strike if you came upon him. Luckily I was amused by his small but aggressive nature so I would pick him up with the pool net or by the tail and send him flying back to the woods behind the house.

But he wasn’t the outdoor type and loved the large stones on the bank to my lower back yard. I had to constantly talk to him about sunning on the rocks in the early morning when we were younger. That my wife was awake and didn’t want to see him that early or at all.

Slim is the long silent type. Sometimes you just take a step outside and there he is. Other times you can be sitting in a chair for hours and then all of a sudden you look behind you and Slim is a few feet behind you. But most of the time you never see him. You see we have this arrangement where he can feast on any rodent, frog or the occasional small bird on the property in exchange that he lay very low.

You see slim doesn’t seem to popular in his circle of friends in nature. If he is seen the squirrels and birds seem to get all excited and announce his presence.  I never have seen him with another friend. That is part of the reason I felt for him.

Yesterday he made a very bold, unannounced appearance at my front door. I said to him he is lucky my wife is at work and that I didn’t trip or step on his ass. I said to him “Slim you look as if you’ve grown a few inches and put on some weight”. I’d say he has to be almost 6 feet by now which makes him taller than me now. Of course I still have a few pounds on him but he is younger and probably a lot faster than me.

I asked if he had time for a picture and he really didn’t answer but didn’t hustle off either so I took that as a yes. So I ran inside and put on the one lens that is working half way and took a few shots. He isn’t one for posing at all. Most of the time he would prefer you have a telephoto lens and gets very mad when you have a short lens on. And yesterday was no exception.

So I guess it will be a few more months till our paths cross. Not my favorite friend by any stretch of the imagination. I really don’t like most members of his family. Occasionally his nasty cousin Copperhead will make an appearance and I run to get my shotgun every time but he manages to make a quick exit. I have to remind Slim every time I see him only immediate family allowed.

But as long as Slim doesn’t turn on me, then its live and let live.