In my comments last Friday I alluded to a snake story and told Edward Arrington that he didn’t want to hear it. He replied he would be interested and that it wouldn’t cause him to have nightmares, so here goes.
It was many years ago that we owned a farm with a mobile home on it. We would sometimes spend the night there, or just the day. One day my husband dropped me off so I could mow the lawn. When I went into the mobile home, I heard a thunk! but I didn’t think much about it since the trailer settled sometimes, especially when we hadn’t been in it in a while. I went about cleaning up the kitchen and dusting.
At some point, I needed to use the bathroom facilities. When I finished, the commode wouldn’t flush. I took a towel and used it as a plunger. No go. I turned the bathtub water on and went outside to see if water was flowing through the septic line. Yep, it was fine.
Scratching my head, I went back inside to the bathroom and swimming in the commode bowl was a HUGE brown snake that looked like a copperhead. I freaked out. When I calmed down, I called the forestry service and asked how to get a snake out of my commode. After he quit chuckling, he said if I poured vinegar in the bowl, it would come out.
I didn’t have vinegar and what was I going to do with it once it was out of the bowl??? I rummaged through the trailer and found a broken sword and a broom. Then I poured a little gasoline (that’s all I had–I was coming to mow the grass, remember?)
The snake came out of that commode faster than I could move. I opened the back door and using the sword and broom somehow got it outside. We did not spend the night at the trailer. Ever again.
And now to last week’s Mystery Question: Insurance fraud drains more than $50 BILLION from insurers each year adding anywhere from $400 to $700 a year in increased premiums. Here are four frauds. Three actually happened. I made up one. Can you guess which one?
- Two men used a pole saw (a saw attached to a pole that is used to saw off tree limbs) to cut off a third man’s hand in order to collect over $600,000.
- Four women invented a man, faked his death and staged a funeral so they could collect over a million dollars. When the insurance companies involved began their investigation, they dug the body up and put a mannequin and cow parts in the casket and then sent the casket to the crematory. They then filed paperwork stating the man had been cremated and his ashes scattered over the Pacific Ocean.
- An elderly woman ran out of funds for her gambling addiction and staged forty-nine slip-and-fall scams, collecting over $500,000 before she was outed.
- When a man’s ceiling cracked he knew his homeowner’s insurance wouldn’t pay for the repair, so he waited for a rainstorm, climbed up in his attic and poured out a gallon of water above the ceiling. Unfortunately, the adjuster climbed up on the roof that the insurance company had replaced just a year earlier and couldn’t find any place where the roof could have leaked.
And the correct answer is…#4! I really had a hard time believing #1 and 2!
Now for this week’s Mystery Question: Four crimes, three of which are true. Can you pick out the false one? Leave a comment and I’ll enter you in a monthly drawing for a book from my library.
- At a bank, a man wrote a note stating he was armed and to hand over all of the money in the register. The bank teller did so without hesitation, then the criminal demanded more money. The teller explained that the machine needed an active license in order to print the money and the criminal handed over his real license and said print it! He made it much easier on the police to arrest him.
- This burglar deserves bungler of the year after he broke into a house with security cameras. The hapless man not only looked straight at the camera, but he somehow left his wallet in the homeowner’s den when he stole a computer…that he dropped by the backdoor.
- A hermit loved to steal from anyone living around him only it wasn’t money, jewelry, or electronics–he mostly stole candy. Even so, he was taken to jail because he was indeed stealing from his neighbors.
- A teenaged girl fell victim to a fake Facebook post put out by the police, stating that drugs, such as meth, have been found containing Ebola. The news alert told people who had purchased meth or heroin recently, to bring it to the local police department to be screened for Ebola. The girl took her meth to the local police department to have it checked for Ebola where she was charged with possession.
Okay, Super Sleuths, which one did I make up? Leave your answer in the comments!
Comments 55
I’m going with #3 this week.
Author
We’ll see Monique. Thanks for stopping by.
I’ll try number 4 this time because teens are pretty savvy nowadays.
Wait, you had a SWORD in your mobile home?
Author
We’ll see, Priscilla…and yes, I had a sword in the mobile home. lol. It belonged to a grandson who was really into Andrew Jackson. 🙂
Hmmmmmm. I want to say #4
Author
We’ll see next week, Jennifer. Thanks for dropping by.
I’m going to say #3 is false.
Author
We’ll see, Nicole. Thanks for commenting.
The fact that any of these are true puts my brain in a quandary but I’ll go with #4 this time. I don’t think the police are allowed to send out false alerts. (At least, I hope not.)
Author
Yes, Delores, it really stretches the brain to realize three of these are true. We’ll see next week if the police can send out false alerts.
AND I’m glad no one struck a match in your trailer as you were evicting the snake!
Author
Yeah, Delores, I thought of that at the time. lol
I’m going to pick #4.
Just say “ no” to snakes!!!
Author
I love the say “no” to snakes, Melissa! Thanks for dropping by.
I’ll choose #3 but honestly I could believe any of them. Just chose #3 because my car has been broken into a few times though nothing important was ever stolen and no thief touched my very visible candy stash in there and if I was stealing, the candy would have definitely been taken.
Author
Wow, PJ! I can’t believe they didn’t take your candy! That’s the first thing I would have gone for. We’ll see next week if you’re correct.
#3? How do you find these stories!? And, I do NOT like snakes either!
Author
MS Barb, I just put crazy crimes or stupid criminals in the search engine…you wouldn’t believe how many pop up. lol
3
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We’ll see, Suzanne. Thanks for dropping in.
#3
Author
We’ll see, Lydia. Thanks for commenting!
Pat, I’m going with #2 today. The trouble is, all of these could be real. It has to be the particulars of the story that make it false. I’d say the would-be thief in #2 sure was a bungler of a burglar.
Now, about your snake tale. I’ve heard of using a snake to clear a drain, but you’ve taken it to a whole new level!
Author
Yeah, it was a whole new level, Tim. I don’t think my husband would even nap in the mobile home after that. 🙂
Thanks for sharing your story, Pat. Sounds like you handled that snake just fine. We’ve never had a snake in our commode; but on two occasions years ago, we had a large sewer rat come up into one of our commodes. Both times, I was able to flush it down. After someone pointed out a hole in the sewer line out by the street, we got the city utility department to replace the damaged box and pipe. I also poured a good dose of Clorox into each commode on several occasions since, just as a precaution.
Now for the mystery question. You’ve expressions such as “three bricks shy of a load,” I’m sure. Those first two apparently don’t have enough bricks to need a wagon. I’m choosing #1 again. Unless there was only one teller working, I think most bank robbers would tell her to get their cash also rather than falling for some line about printing more money.
Author
Eww, Edward, a rat? Shudder. I think I can handle a snake better than a rat. lol. Agree about the wagon, too. Thanks for commenting.
#1.
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We’ll see, Sharon. Thanks for dropping by.
I am going with #1 this week.
Author
That several for #1, Gloria. We’ll see next week which one is correct. Thanks for commenting!
I’m going with #3…
Author
There have been several guesses for #3, Linda. We’ll see next week! Thanks for stopping by.
I’ll go with #1. What a snake story….lol I am terrified of them.
Author
Yes, I’ve always thought it was an interesting story, Jackie. And I’m not fond of snakes, either. 🙂 Many years ago when my husband and I cruised timber, I often was watching the ground more than looking at the trees. 🙂
Thank goodness there are so many criminals who are careless or non-thinking. I’ll guess #4.
Thanks for your stories and these mystery questions.
Pat, you are indeed a SNAKE SLAYER! BRAVO!!! I’m guessing #1 is false.
Author
Thank you, Caryl! And we’ll see next week if it’s #1.
I’ll say # 3. The others sound too convincing to not be real. My snake story is this: My sister and I were visiting our Mom. Somehow a snake got in on the small enclosed porch leading to the front door. It was a harmless black snake but a snake is a snake is a snake. My sister who is afraid of everything and I’m not, pushed me out the door armed with a Swiffer. As I said earlier the porch was not big but had a lot of potted plants on it. So the snake and I went round and round. You could hear my sister laughing hysterically, safe on the other side of the door. She was looking through the peep hole in the door. Finally, after 30 min. or so the snake decided he’d had enough of this crazy lady and out the door he went. Needless to say, I would have won, hands down, America’s Funniest Home Videos.
Author
Oh, if only your sister had been videoing you most certainly would have won! And we’ll see if your logic proves correct next week.
Love the snake story.
Author
Thanks, Sally Jo! No guess? 🙂
I’ll say #3
Author
Another guess for #3. We’ll see next week, Alicia! Thanks for stopping by.
Oh dear, Patricia your snake story made me chuckle! Not that it was funny at the time, or probably now…but gas into a toliet? That could have had explosive results….the part I had to chuckle at was your weilding a sword while snake wrangling…lol! Oh dear 🙂 You should take fencing lessons after that one.
I’m so happy I guessed the correct answer from last weeks question. But I have to give my husband the credit, I asked him which one he thought was false. He was the one to point out that a insurance adjuster probably wouldn’t be the one to inspect the roof, but the insurance company most likely would send a roofer. It sounded like sound logic to me 🙂 He’s a pretty savvy guy! As for the mystery question of the week, I’m going with #3 just because it sounds so ridiculous. Of course I agree, stealing candy is still stealing, but I probably wouldn’t press charges, I’d just be grateful he didn’t steal anything valuable. 🙂 I’d probably even keep him stocked in whatever kind of candy he liked best so he didn’t feel he had to go around stealing it.
Are you going to use your snake story to write into one of your books? You really should!
Author
Trixi, I hate to tell you this but even though I made that one up, here in Mississippi, the insurance adjuster climbs on the roof and examines it for damage. 🙂 As for using the snake story in a book, the opportunity hasn’t come up where I could. lol Thanks for stopping by and we’ll see next week if it’s #3.
#2
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We’ll see, Lucy. Thanks for dropping by.
I’ll go with #3 this time
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Number 3 has quite a few in its column, Shelia. We’ll see next week if it’s the correct answer.
#2
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Numbers 2 and 3 seem to be the most popular answers, Lisa. We’ll see Tuesday!
#3
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Another one for #3, Jeanna! We’ll see if this popular answer is the correct one next week. Thanks for stopping by.
I am guessing #3. Love the snake story! I would be freaking out for sure!
Author
I was freaking out, Leica! And we’ll see Tuesday if it’s #3.