RATS!

We sometimes hear about how bad a place or situation was when it includes roaches. Someone may have been in a jail or prison that had roaches running around or may have had a bad experience with a motel, restaurant, etc., that involved various buggage. To me these people live in a different world. Oh sure, I have seen nice places which are bug and rodent free, at least as far as I can tell, and have even managed to live in a few such places in the past. No more...fellow travelers are the norm here, even if they sometimes travel through your dinner plate or across your face when you're trying to sleep. The buggage, that is. The rodentry, well, that's a little much.

We have at least two of them now who have decided to allow us to share their home. Sometimes the house is quiet and you can hear a clattering going on in the kitchen...sounds like someone is about to cook supper. So far they have not been that useful. Both my mom and dad told me when I was little that I was chicken-hearted. I didn't think so, only that I was smarter and more cautious than most, when it came to people, and that the suffering of animals did bother me. Still, sometimes conflict simply cannot be avoided. So, I got the trap. Managed to avoid having snapped fingers and loaded it with peanut butter. Set the hair trigger and placed it on the floor between the fridge and a wall, in the major rodent highway.

A while later, during an episode of House, we heard a loud SNAP! in the kitchen. Melinda went to look and announced there was a victim. We decided to wait till morning, when one of us would deal with the enemy soldier. Morning came and I gingerly poked at the trap...something seemed odd. It was upside down, and somehow tangled in the old grate that used to be on the bottom of some fridge. When I finally got a good look at the trap, it was empty. No victim. No blood. Not only empty but...taken apart! The wire trigger for the trap had been removed from where one end was anchored. It's not usable now. No peanut butter either.

Later, in the night, I awoke to find either him or his friend staring at me. I know rodents are smart, they learn. I wonder what the lesson was...? Why was he staring at me? What...it shouldda been cheese!? We finally got the new free cell phone from Safelink. If I find a tiny irate eviction notice on my pillow I will call the landlady. If I find a rat head in my bed I will call 911.

TRB