By Sheri Hopkins
Lifestyle Contributor
Hello everyone! Beautiful day in the neighborhood today. Love this time of year, except for the ants, flies, snakes and other critters. Seems like the flies are awful this year. Lots of folks killing snakes also. I don’t like snakes, but I don’t want to kill the black snakes. Actually, I don’t want to kill any of them, I just want to run from them. Have you seen me run? I can’t run, but I bet if a snake was chasing me, I bet I’d kick it in gear.
Do any of ya’ll remember when Gina Epperson got snake bit? Let me tell ya, I still love to tell that story. She is one person that is scared to death of a snake. I mean she really is, and this just made her worse. She was off work because it was her daughter, Cheyenne’s birthday, July 8. There is a memorial cross set up for Cheyenne on Dayton Road. It has been there since she passed away, and Gina always takes something out there for her birthday. The Nicodemus family always takes a wreath or some sort of flowers out there on that day also. Gina drives out to Dayton Road in the heat of the day to put something on the cross. I’m at work and all of a sudden, she comes hobbling to the front door of the bank, very disheveled looking. Her face was bright red, hair standing on end and she was breathing heavy. She was a sight to see.
Here is what happened. She was going down in the ditch to put her flowers out and she sees a snake crossing the road quite a way down. So, she just stops there in the ditch and let the snake cross the road and make its way down in the ditch in the opposite direction of her. She is watching the snake and says it was just like she yelled “hey, I’m over here, come and get me.” That snake turned around and looked her right in the eye and came chasing after her like a streak of lightning. She tries to run up the steep ditch and she is making tracks like Fred Flintstone trying to get out of that ditch, kicking and screaming with that snake on her heels. She is hysterical by this time, oh if only I had been there to record this episode. She finally gets up the hill, but not till after the snake bites her and she runs and gets in her car. She don’t know if the snake is hanging on her or where it’s at. That’s when she proceeds to drive to the bank to ask me what she needs to do.
I tell people I’m a doctor and I do good diagnosing folks, that’s why she came to see me. Fortunately, the snake only got one fang in the back of her leg. Good thing she was fast on her feet and kicking like a crazy woman. Her leg turned black and was swelled for about two weeks. She lived to tell about a snake bite. If ya’ll could have seen her walking in the bank that day, it’s a look I will never forget.
Moral of this story is, don’t ever trust a snake in the grass. Hope y’all have a great week. Remember happiness is a choice. This week’s recipe comes from Sue Moore. It sounds so good for this time of year. Y’all enjoy this tasty dessert.
CREAM CHEESE PINEAPPLE PIE
1 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup crushed pineapple, drained
1 8 oz. tub whipped topping
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup melted butter
20 graham crackers, crushed fine
1/4 cup shredded coconut
1/4 cup drained pineapple, drained
In a medium mixing bowl, mix the cream cheese with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually add the powdered sugar and mix until well combined. Mix in the whipped topping and beat till fluffy. With a spatula, fold in the crushed pineapple and set aside. In a small mixing bowl, mix the crushed graham crackers and granulated sugar and melted butter until well combined, then pat mixture into a 9×9 baking dish. Now, I always take the easy way out, and buy a graham cracker crust and use that instead of going to all this trouble, that’s me. Spoon the filling in the crust and smooth with a spatula. Top with shredded coconut and pineapple. Refrigerate for two hours or until firm. You can also add a few cherries on the top.
