The War on Fivel

 

I, 'City Mouse' am now at war with my country cousins. I found mouse sh*t on my counters this morning. 

It completely threw off the timing of all my plans. I had everything mapped out strategically last night before bed. Wake up, fed crazies, color hair, put stuff in the drier, get everyone dressed, head to Indy. Once in Indy, pick up the vacuum I scored on Craig's List (left mine in NY), go to Target for a trash can, Trader Joe's for goodies, and Staples for a router and paper. But noooo... I have to find Fivel's trail on my counters!!!

So ensued a crazed cleaning spree while feeling completely grossed out. And then I had to laugh at myself because not two months ago I considered getting Aidan and Ciaran mice from Petco. What's the difference? 

A cage. A cage where they can poo and not crawl all over my counters. That's the difference.

It's not like I didn't know there were mice around though. I saw one in the basement the other day. It decided to die on its own I think because a few days later I found it keeled over. I really don't think my cat-mouse-trap killed it as there were no visible wounds. Maybe it just decided to kick it instead of get mauled by a cat or caught in a trap? 

I was a bit squeamish about having traps around. I hate to kill anything. But Scott and the in-laws are right - I can't have them in the house. Especially not pooing on my counters. Little f*ckers. I'm opting for the old snap trap things over the glue pads. I just can't with the glue pads. If I have to kill them, I want it over with fast. I don't want them to know what hit them. With glue traps they get stuck there and die slow. I could never handle that. When I worked in the coffee bar on 40th Street in Manhattan, I would be the one laying on the floor of the back room, looking under the appliances and sinks at the struggling mice dying on the glue pads, crying and talking sweet to them. I soon got one the schedule of the Orkin Man and after he laid the glue traps... I'd sneak back there and get rid of them. Don't tell the Brother's Coffee Company. Oh, wait - they went out of business! Nevermind.

I probably invited them though. As I was cleaning the kitchen, I considered that dishes left in the sink overnight here probably isn't a good idea. Nor is leaving anything in a pot on the stove. My days of cleaning up in the morning are over, I think. Now I have to have everything all spic n'span before I can relax for the night. Damn you, Fivel! Get back on that ship for Russia. 

I also had to kill a wasp couple building a nest underneath my awning over the back door. I apologized profusely before I sprayed the killer spray. I dreaded that for days. They were so busy doing their thing, I just put it off and put it off. But then yesterday I got stung by a jackass wasp over at my mother-in-law's pool. Its like a big glass of water to those things and they are pretty unavoidable. It hurt like hell but keeping my arm in the 78 degree water helped. However, today it itches like crazy. I have to reach it with a brush or get Aidan to itch it for me. :) That's the bonus to having  little minions. 

So yeah. I killed the wasps before they could sting my kids. Or me. I guess it was one mother against another.