Ulysses - Quite a Proper Name For My Toad Buddy

The toad formerly known as "Toad" is quite a character.  As you see from his pictures, he is quite portly and clearly has some age on him.  Last evening.  He appeared in the pond with his front feet on the side of the pond, looking up at me, with a snake swimming around him.  He was completely unfazed.  I grabbed said snake with my kitchen tongs and stuck him in a bucket.  I recognized him as a prior offender from his stubby tail, clearly the victim of some bigger snake or the wrong end of someone's shovel.  Snake won a car ride a few miles down the road, where he was released, safe and sound, in a thicket of trees.

Toad, I mean, Ulysses, stayed underwater for awhile, but when I came back, he popped out, faced me again and we hung out for awhile.  This elder toad needed a name that would evidence his years on this planet, his ability to survive in this harsh, sun-drenched landscape of Texas with so many predators around him and his current status as the big toad that no one messes with.  What kind of tales of adventure could this brave toad tell? The tales of brave Ulysses and his battles and victories in ancient Greece came to mind.  What also came to mind was General U.S. Grant, scourge of the South, that portly gentleman famous for finishing off the South during the Civil War, being a great supporter of civil rights (for the time), and leaving office is somewhat of a scandal because of corruption.  So, I don't mind whether you think of grand Ulysses fighting the Trojans or the Ulysses who sent Sherman off to march when you see Toad, I mean Ulysses.  Just know that he really liked it when I sang to him "The Tales of Brave Ulysses" last night.  He was very attentive, let me take pictures, and then serenaded me with his own song outside my window later that night. I am hoping that he found his Aphrodite and tadpoles will again grace the pond.