Ruminatorial

RIP, little grey mouse.

After 9 weeks of steadily intensifying battles, the war has ended.

Yesterday as I prepared breakfast, I noticed a rustling on the top shelf of my pantry. So I rearranged a lower shelf to block all exits, and placed 4 traps at strategic locations where the little critter would try to run. Then I found a 3 foot long dowel to poke around on the shelf and spur him into flight.

Well, that mouse knows my pantry better than I do. He fled down the back through a gap I hadn't been aware of, and escaped unscathed.

So I plugged up those exits, tightened the cordon, and left for the day. When I came back, he was again on the top shelf, nestled amongst my bags of rice and trail mix. The little bastard! So I poked and prodded to stir him out again. He sat for a while with his tail hanging over the back of the shelf, seeming awfully nonchalant for a creature being attacked by something 2000 times its weight. But eventually (after carefully collecting his wits, I suspect) he fled straight onto my trapped shelf.

And continued his descent, apparently able to make a gap between traps where I hadn't seen one before, avoiding the triggers and stayin' alive like the best old school minefield sweeper you ever met.

So I again tightened up my traps and went to bed resigned to needing alternate, more severe methods.

This morning, preparing breakfast, I find that the mouse's luck has run out. He was found dead in a trap at 7:45am.

I swaddled him in the finest linen (aka Bounty) and with a brief prayer floated his little soft grey body with its white belly down the Ganges (aka dumpster).

A sad victory is celebrated today in my house.

posted by Jeff @ 8:32 AM