Woman quit her NYC investment banking job to move to Zimbabwe, only to be greeted by a python living in her ceiling

It is quite the transition to go from the high-pressure world of New York City investment banking to a quiet life in Zimbabwe, but one former banker found her new living situation involved a very unexpected roommate, Daily Dot reported. A video that originally went viral in July on TikTok and later resurfaced on X shows the creator, known as @alexblumy, discovering a large snake peering down at her from inside her ceiling.

In the original footage, you can see the creator look up and gasp as she spots the head of what appears to be an African rock python. She can be heard saying, “He’s in my house!” The creator has maintained a surprisingly calm perspective on the whole ordeal.

Since the initial discovery, she has provided updates to her followers about the status of the snake, whom she has affectionately named Peter. In a follow-up video, she stood beneath the same area of the ceiling and noted, “As you can see, there’s nobody in the ceiling. I have not seen him since I returned home, nor has anyone else.” She explained that the snake has not been spotted by anyone since the day of the original viral post.

To get a better handle on the situation, she consulted a friend who is a herpetologist

Based on the size of the snake’s head in the footage, her friend estimated that the python is likely around seven feet long. The expert explained that a snake of that size would typically hunt prey roughly the size of a rabbit, rather than a human. He also provided some interesting insights into the behavior of these animals. According to her friend, pythons view humans as potential predators, much like they would view a jackal or a leopard.

Perhaps most interestingly, the herpetologist noted that pythons are territorial creatures. He suggested that Peter’s presence in her home might actually be a good thing, as it could keep a reported 12-foot python living elsewhere in the neighborhood away from her property. He also claimed that this same territorial behavior likely helps keep other more dangerous venomous snakes out of her home.

The creator seems to have taken this information to heart. She mentioned that she believes Peter has remained in the thatched roof structure throughout the winter, intentionally avoiding her rather than moving on to a new location. After learning about the potential protective benefits, she said she feels comfortable with the idea of the snake living above her.

Not everyone online shares her relaxed attitude, however. Many people expressed significant concern in the comments, pointing out that not knowing the current location of a seven-foot snake is a bit unsettling. One commenter wrote, “I’m so stressed for her because she came back from NY and now she can’t find it lol she’s not worried but I am.”

Others were skeptical of the herpetologist friend’s advice, with one person writing, “She said she spoke to her snake scientist friend who said that python isn’t big enough to try and eat a human based on head size and because he’s living in there is likely keeping larger pythons away. So anyway idk why her friend has sided with the snakes but she’s in danger.”

There were even some lighter reactions to the situation, with one user joking about the expression on the python’s face in the original video. They wrote, “The python’s face was giving: hey mama come let’s play I promise not to bite.”