Yep, it's true. He and I made a bet six years ago to see who could collect the most hands on materials for their classroom. He chose snakes while I choose gold from ancient Egypt. Boy, did I underestimate how much historic one-of-a-kind golden antiquities would cost. To top it off, snakes can reproduce, something that would have been nice to know before our contest started!
It's no wonder this guy just barely beat me that year.