Picture Perfect

People never cease to fascinate me, especially familiar faces.

Of course, we all know a familiar face are those people who you say day-to-day, but never really speak to. Nonetheless, you grow accustomed to seeing them around - be it that lady with the funny hair-style you pass on the way to work, or the elderly gentleman who walks 15 minutes each way every morning to pick up his daily paper - always the daily telegraph - in those odd shoes he always wear - dark brown, the look of leather, worn at the front and sides - which you're convinced are slippers, but aren't quite sure. 

Today, I went to the house of one of my familiar faces.
No, I didn't break and enter just for kicks; I didn't event stalk him. I happen to be friends with his nephew, who said "let's pop into my uncles house!" Ever ready to meet new people, I agreed - and it happened to be a gentleman who I see about twice a week. Ironically, I introduced myself to him just hours before, on a whim that he was related to my friend (my friend's dad and this fellow look quite similar). You should have seen the look of surprise on his face when he came down the stairs to see me sitting on a chair in his living room.

This house was small, the walls covered in books, the people in it gloriously happy and very chatty. A young family, as far as I could tell, it was made up of two parents, three girls (I put their ages at 9 [she looked like she was 5, but she said she was 9...] 14 and 15) two boys (aged 11. I never saw the other). But wait until I get to the good bit: it turns out they have a few pets. A bird, which I'm told by my friend bites - and its wings aren't clipped and yes, they let it fly around the house (i had to duck every so often. Being tall, I didn't fancy my chances as ending up as its perch) - some other things (I forget) and a snake (the other pets pale in comparison to this one). It's called Sammy, apparantly. Sammy the Snake (or, as I said to the girl holding her when I thought she was 5 - "Sammy the squirming squiggly snake!" You know the voice, high pitched, patronising. Thaats. the one.

The point of this post is to tell you: kids, I touched a snake. That's right. I fear nothing and no one. No snakes. Not even moths can bring me down (as Moth Monument on my ceiling shows. I have half a mind to take it down, though. It's been a few years...).

That is all I have to say.