Well, the hurricane passed over us on the weekend, lots and lots of heavy rain and wind, but no damage except some old dead trees out back. We got lucky, as other areas were hit with power lines down and very wild winds. Next day was beautiful, sunshine and fairly warm breezes. After the time change I'm still feeling a bit disoriented trying to adjust. Hate the dark creeping up so early in the afternoon, makes the night seem longer somehow.
Last night I opened the cellar door to move some things and saw something hop away from the light. At first I took it for a mouse - I've met them down there before - but a good look showed me a fair sized leopard frog. Given the damp condition down there after all that rain, he probably mistook the puddles for a pond. Live and let live, so I left him there. He'll be okay, no problem getting out if he wants to - old houses have lots of secret paths for small creatures.
That brings me to a bit of excitement at about 2:30 this morning, when the cat leaped out of bed and ran downstairs. I sort of woke up, thinking he'd spotted his nemesis, a black stray that wanders around our place sometimes. A little while later, he hopped back into bed but kept jumping around. That's when I really woke up, realizing he'd once again bagged a rodent. Last winter he set a record one night catching three moles in about an hour. Why is it always in the wee hours? Ugh!!! I grabbed him up, dead mouse firmly gripped in his mouth while he growled at me (he knows I steal them). Out to the porch, door slammed on him while I watch out the window and look for heavy gloves and a container for disposing of the body. Yucch!!
Then I see him drop and grab and realize it's a worst case scenario - the mouse is not dead but faking. So I distract him, grab his ears a bit, drop mouse into plastic dish and jump outside with it. Check it over for damage, seems more scared that hurt, a lucky one this time so off he goes out behind the shed into the blackberry bushes for shelter. Hope he made it, unless they're hopeless I can't bear to do away with them and just wish they'd stay out of the house. You'd think cat smell would keep them at bay, but not here, oh no!! Hopeless cases get dispatched as humanely as possible by my son, but we've been lucky, only one like that. Usually they're totally dead, the cat just likes to toss the bodies around in my bed. It's better that an alarm for getting you up, I'll say that for it.
This afternoon is dark and rainy, with wind whipping the rain from the east almost as fiercely as the hurricane/tropical storm Noel. Looks like we're in for "a dark and stormy night." Here's hoping the mice stay tucked away in their beds.
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