What It’s (Really) Like to Live in Beautiful Bali

I saw a snake in my house today.

That was going to be the whole post. I’d planned it in my head. There would be a beautiful, picturesque view of Bali as the featured image, an enticing article title, and then just one line.

I saw a snake in my house today.

But I’ve decided I also need to add three more things. One: Details. Two: Context. Three: Resolution.

Details

I didn’t see the snake. Well, not clearly. Jarrell saw the snake on his way to make our daily espressos, in the mug he always matches with my outfit, to start our idyllic mornings. To his surprise, there was a snake on the rug that sits in front of the oven. After a few (what I imagine were slow) blinks, he realized what it was, made some sort of noise and scared the snake, causing it to run underneath the stove.

This set in play three hours that started my day. Three hours that got me behind on my water drinking. Three hours that made me miss my first workout. Three hours that prevented me from getting any work done.

The exterminator arrived and was convinced the snake had left, or possibly was never there to begin with. Thankfully, my always ready to capture the moment ass got footage of the little fucker peeking its head from behind the cabinets for proof that it was there! We saw it!

The entire kitchen had to be moved for this damn snake. The refrigerator was relocated to another part of the kitchen. The teakwood cabinets were pulled from the wall, and eventually lifted. The oven was shifted. The plumbing was disconnected. The gas was turned off. All for a snake, that was in my house.

We had to get the house snake proofed. Did you know that is a thing? Like, a man comes to place deterrents and traps and plugs holes and make your place non-snake friendly. It’s a thing.

Context

Yesterday it rained in the style our driver Yudi accurately describes as ‘big rain’. It’s about three levels past ‘cats and dogs’. I mean, pouring rain, for hours. It was so severe Jarrell told me to unbuckle my seat belt as we were headed home after our workout. Because, yes, we still had to do our workout (75-Hard is about doing the things you don’t want to do when you don’t want to do them to instill mental toughness through discipline). The reason for my need to unbuckle my seatbelt was because we were undoubtedly in a flash flood and Jarrell worried the car could tip at any moment. It was that kind of rain.

Couple that with the fact that I fell in love with our house because of the view. You know that beautiful view of the rice fields I share on my story every day? That beautiful view that I am facing as I type this with furious fingers still in disbelief that there was a snake in my house.

Well, that view is not just for my admiration. It is more than a backdrop for Instagram photos. It is the livelihood of the people who painstakingly care for it, in blazing heat and ‘big rain’. The irrigation system is so elaborate and impressive it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It’s extremely complex, with an entire ecosystem of animals that live there – snakes, eels, mice, cats, bugs, ducks, birds, etc.

And when ‘big rain’ comes, everything floods. Some of these animals are misplaced, and pushed to new destinations, like my kitchen.

Resolution

It was kinda bizarre how calm I was throughout this whole fiasco. I guess I’ve lived here long enough to know the three words Jarrell and I often say to each other in times like this. “This is Bali,” usually with a shrug and deep sigh. The land is incredibly beautiful, the people unbelievably kind, but this is not created just for our enjoyment. It is not an amusement park curated to look a certain way for our photos. It is an entire ecosystem that we live within. 

The day just kinda, went on. The exterminator finished his job and left. The kitchen appliances were moved back to their normal positions. My house helper named Made cleaned everything so you would never know that three hours of my morning were spent supervising from the sofa. 

I went back to my writing and still had to exercise twice, drink a gallon of water, follow a healthy diet, and all the other things I’m doing on this 75-day challenge. Because I am me, I did feel like I’d earned something (although I literally did nothing to resolve the issue). Because Jarrell is him, he agreed. So, we did a little shopping and went to spend the day at a beautiful health club, ending with a couples massage.

But, let’s not forget. There was a snake in my house today, people. And I still had to do today. That’s what it’s like to live in beautiful Bali. 

XOXO