Pet Snail reference to Patricia Highsmith
I wonder if the pet snail was a reference to Patricia Highsmith, the author of Strangers on a Train. She kept snails as pets.
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actually it is a reference to a swedish snail, made famous in a tv-show called "Björnes magasin" (roughly translated as "Björnes storage"(Björn=Bear)). The snail served as a close accomplice to the star of the show.
For confirmation, google "snigel björnes magasin".