Tuesday, November 10, 2009

EsCARgot

I find the crunch of acorns underfoot very satisfying. But not the crunch of snails. After the summer from HELL we've had a very wet fall. There are gastropods all over the sidewalks and it is impossible to miss them all. Too often the snails meet suddenly with death with an audible, sickening crunch.

For a while we had a small accumulation of dead leaves two paces from our doorstep. We squashed a few snails, then more would come to consume their dead brethren, then they would get squashed, too.

Today there was a snail on a leaf on my windshield. The window was also foggy, so I turned on my wipers, flicking the snail-leaf combo to the ground before I backed out. Or so I thought. By the time I reached the freeway, the snail started hauling his long body and house across my windshield again. The first part of my drive is low velocity from all the traffic, and I watched his undulating efforts. Past a certain exit things accelerate, and as I drove 40, 50 miles an hour, the wind pulled the snails shell away from his body. He pulled his antennae in, hunkered down, and clung to my windshield.

At 60 mph, he suddenly detached. Involuntarily, I said, "Oh!" and tried to see him in my rearview mirror. I'm sure he was flattened by one of the many cars behind me. Oh well. I don't love the snails, but I don't like watching or hearing their demise.

4 comments:

Emily said...

Oh no!!!! (Thinking Mr. Bill from old SNL)

I think this makes up for your comment in a previous post about looking forward to an animal getting hit by a car (so you could fix them up). I'm not a huge fan of snails, but I agree, I don't want to feel the crunch and realize it was my foot that ended it.

sarah doow said...

He was like the Bruce Willis of snails. Was he wearing a vest?

paula said...

Oh I hate it when I go to take the rubbish out at night and hear that sickening crunch ... even worse is when you realise that it's little friend is still sat there wondering what happened (they tend to travel in two's in our back).
Dreadful business.

peevish said...

Ooh, you got a comment from Sarah!

I must admit I have stopped my car to rescue critters from dying en route. Right now there is a fly in my car who refuses to leave. When will it die??? It refuses to exit through the doors or windows.