Last week, I was nestled in my cozy bed in the middle of the night, minding my own business when I was suddenly woken up. A little noise was coming from above the bed, namely, the attic. It was a combination of the tell-tale scratchy noise of a mouse and what I can only describe as an acorn being rolled across the rafters. (D later described it as mouse bowling.)
Regardless, I was not pleased. Especially since between the acorn rolling and scratching sounds, I also had to deal with D's snoring. Well, until I poked him. Which he didn't like. Because he started whining in a sleepy, confused state, "Ow, why'd you hit me?" And then proceeded to fall back asleep and continue snoring. Lucky me.
I stewed for a little while before falling back asleep because a) I had to go to work the next morning and this little bugger was annoying; and b) D & I had bought mousetraps the weekend before since we had heard Mr. Mouse's scampering before. It was rather inconsistent and we didn't hear him every night. In fact, D had even set a trap before. And when he checked it, it had not gone off, but the peanut butter was all gone. Hence, we needed to buy new traps.
Eventually I fell asleep and the next day ask D if he'd set the trap. He hadn't. Apparently I'd hidden the traps. In the bag from Lowe's. In the kitchen. Right out in the open that he probably walked past 20 times a day. I love my husband dearly, but he's right. If I want to hide something from him, all I have to do it put it right in front of him.
So he baited and set the trap and put it in the attic. And we proceeded to forget about it...until last night.
Now, I must interrupt myself and explain, this is not like the time that I was home and heard the trap go off. Since we live in a ranch-style house and the attic doesn't have pull down stairs, there is just a piece of wood at the access point to the attic, which is located in the hallway. A few years ago we had a little mouse get in the attic. D set a trap, and apparently placed it very near to this access point. One day I was home and the trap went off. Now that's a sound I was ok with. But what proceeded to happen is something that could have lived without. The trap went off, and must have fallen onto the access piece of wood, because for the next 15 minutes all I heard was "thump, thump...whack, thump...thump, whack." Apparently our trap wasn't "efficient" so I actually started pleading with the mouse to "just give it up, buddy." Of course, D was very happy that I'd left it for him to take care of when he got home.
So fast forward a few years, and what did I hear last night? Well, it wasn't the trap going off.
Me (lying in bed, just about to go to sleep, with my eyes wide open as soon as I heard the faint scampering): I know you heard that.
D: Um...yeah.
Me: Did you check the trap?
D: No...but only because you've been home. (I like that in this situation, I'm more of a nuisance than the mouse)
Me: So, it might be a new mouse?
D: It's either a mouse or....
Me: Or a squirrel? Because I'm still trying to figure out what a mouse would do with an acorn (because I am convinced that was what he was rolling about the other night).
So imagine how excited I was to receive this text from my husband this morning:
mice population in attic -1
Unfortunately, he also confirmed that there is in fact a second mouse. Apparently our attic is a mouse sanctuary. Although D said he thinks the first mouse was a sacrifice because all the peanut butter in the trap was gone. I guess now it's my husband versus the Alpha Mouse.
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