Itinerant HRS snake recovered

Once thought to be a fugitive on the loose in High Rise South, "Sam the Snake" is no longer at large. The notorious 30-inch Florida King snake -- which College junior Rudy Delgado brought into his dorm room illegally to keep as a pet -- escaped from its cage earlier this week. But thanks to Delgado's ingenuity and one very tasty-smelling mouse, dorm residents will no longer have to check their beds twice at night before crawling in between their sheets. Delgado said yesterday that he always had a hunch his estranged reptile had not strayed too far from his room. So, he used a trail of "wood shavings," which smelled of fresh mice, to lure Sam from its hiding place in the heating/air-conditioning unit in Delgado's room. Sam is now in captivity at an off-campus location, Delgado said. Residential Living Director Gigi Simeone said she is thrilled that "Sam the Snake" is no longer on the loose. "We're delighted that it has been removed from the building, never to return," she said. "I'm sure the residents of Harrison are delighted as well." Nursing sophomore Michelle Mooney, who lives on Delgado's floor, said she is relieved that Sam no longer poses a threat. Mooney constructed a fortress of "milk crates and pillow cases" around her bed this week to prevent the snake from entering her room via the heat vent. "As long as I didn't find it under my bed I'm happy," she said. "But I don't see why they didn't look [in Delgado's room] in the first place." As a residential advisor in HRS, College junior Ryan Stevens said he spoke with several students who were traumatized by the incident. To make light of the situation, he placed signs all over the dorm which read: "Wanted: Snake. Armed but not dangerous. Reward: free pizza." But once Sam was lured out of hiding and Stevens was able to hold it in his arms, he said he became convinced the entire event was blown out of proportion. "He's quite a cute little guy," he said. "He's really a mellow snake." Because Delgado located the missing reptile, he will receive the free pizza reward -- complete with the topping of his choice. But Delgado, who was fined $50 each day since the snake's escape last weekend, said he would rather use the money Stevens plans to spend on the pizza toward his debt. Although Delgado said he was relieved when his pet snake finally came slithering out of hiding yesterday, he said he is worried that Sam became "thinner" from the ordeal. To fatten up the reptile, Delgado fed it a mouse at his friend's off-campus apartment, he said.

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