Our story is not complete without telling of a man who could not give a convincing explanation about his broken arm.

He kept muttering something about trying to stick his arm through his car window that he thought was down.

That was the public version, in private, he confessed that it happened when his wife brought some potted plants indoors after they had been out on the patio all day.

A friendly garter snake had hidden in one of the pots, and later slithered out across the floor, and the wife spotted it.

“I was in the bathtub when I heard her scream,” he related

“I thought she was being murdered, so I jumped out of the tub, and ran to help her

I didn’t even grab a towel.

When I ran into the living room, she yelled that a snake was under the couch

I got down on all fours to look for it, and just then my dog came up from behind and ‘cold-nosed’ me.

I guess I thought it was the snake, and I fainted dead away.”

“My wife thought I’d had a heart-attack and called for an ambulance

I was still groggy when the medics arrived, and lifted me onto a stretcher.

Just as they were carrying me out, the snake came out from under the couch, and obviously frightened one of the medics

He dropped his end of the stretcher ….

and that is when I broke my arm.”