grapes rats snakes birds and cats
Stephen House
my grapevine is out of control / it covers parts of my overgrown garden and climbs all over the falling down side fence into the neighbours back yard / the neighbour doesn’t seem to care about the vine or the fence / i mentioned it and he laughed / a few days later he said he can’t afford a new fence and i said that’s ok because i don’t really care about the fence falling down / it doesn’t mean much in regards to life and other things i’m dealing with / it feels as though the neighbour is dealing with stuff too as when i said that he shook his head in agreeance and we both laughed //
in summer i eat the grapes that grow on the vine / but i must be careful for as i tread over the vine and reach up to it i could run into a snake / i heard a snake in the vine once / maybe saw the flick of a tail but it was getting dark so i wasn’t sure / but i was sure about the hiss / it scared the shit out of me / a snake hiss is a noise that you never forget / hisssss / fuck that was a snake i said aloud / i got away from that vine fast that time / the grapes are an old fashioned type / big and sweet with seeds / grapes you buy now don’t have seeds / they are genetically modified not to i guess //
the grapes in summer attract rats / its ok if it’s only one or two / but if it becomes more that’s a big issue / it’s complicated though as the rats are native rats / not dirty introduced black rats / the native rats are cute and light brown with big eyes and pretty faces / i saw one the other day climbing over the broken fence railing towards a bunch of grapes / rat saw me and stopped for a moment and smiled / i smiled back / and then rat darted under the vine / i don’t like killing any creatures and so the rat issue can be complex if there are more than one or two / what does one do //
there is another issue around summer grapes and native rats who like them / snakes like rats / everyone knows that / and of course plenty of rats eating plenty of grapes means hissing snakes that can bite and kill / we have brown snakes around where i live / there are lots in summer / i’m often in the garden with bare feet / it’s nice walking through an overgrown garden with bare feet / i don’t often remember to watch out for snakes / though when i see a rat i am reminded about snakes / multiple people were bitten by snakes in australia last year and there were fatalities //
my other side fence is falling down also / the woman who lives next door is not interested in a new fence either / she says she can’t afford it / my overgrown garden is mixed into the falling down fence / no grape vine that side but native trees and shrubs i planted decades ago / the native growth attracts native birds / i like birds and watch the many species often / but there is an issue / the woman has a cat / the cat likes birds / i’ve found dead birds her cat has killed / i have spoken about it to the woman / she laughed and still lets her fucking cat roam / i wonder if her cat likes snakes //
Stephen House has won many awards and nominations as a poet, playwright, and actor. He’s been commissioned often, with 20 plays produced, and many published by Australian Plays Transform. He’s won two Awgie Awards, Adelaide Fringe, Rhonda Jancovich Poetry, Goolwa Poetry, Feast Short Story Awards and more. He’s been shortlisted for Lane Cove Literary, Overland’s Fair Australia Fiction, Patrick White Playwright, Queensland Premier Drama, Greenroom best actor Awards and more. He’s received Australia Council Ireland and Canada literature residencies. He has had two chapbooks published by ICOE Press Australia. He performs hit acclaimed monologues widely and has had a play run in Spain for 4 years. His poetry is published often, including in ē·rā/tiō.