Monday, November 19, 2012

The follow-up blog post

It being a Monday and me being short on inspiration in the rain, I thought I'd take the opportunity to provide a few follow-ups. I realise I've raised a few issues over the past month or so, and haven't taken the time to share the outcomes, so here they are:

•You may remember the torturous search for pillows. Well, we finally bought some. And we got it wrong. They are too... lofty (see image). So they are relegated to the spare bed (note to visitors: bring your own pillows) and the search continues. Sigh.

•I am yet to come up with a name for the Dad character in my current novel. He remains Fred.

•My shy friend Allison Dobell reports that reviews are beginning to come through on Goodreads for her book Alice's Wonderland. You can read them here. And here at Amazon.

•Finally, the mouse saga continues. After the construction and shenanigans that ensued on the discovery of Mousies One and Two, The Builder got serious the following night, putting out two mousetraps and some bait. The door to the pantry was wedged shut. All manner of foodstuff was locked down. The hatches were battened.

Then we had to explain to the children what was going on. And why we had to shut all doors, internal and external, that night. And why they couldn't go near the 'poison' near the cat mouse door. Mr8 nodded and went about his business. Mr5 went very quiet. Always a bad sign.

Just before bed, he came to us in tears. "What's wrong?" we asked.

"Mousies have families too," he wailed. "If the mousies don't go home to their families the other mousies will worry."

We exchanged looks over his head. "We're just trying to, er, scare them away," I said.

"Then why are you putting out poison? Poison won't scare them, it will kill them," he said. Lord save me from the logical child.

"Well," said The Builder. "We have to keep them out of the house. They eat all our food and also spread germs. It's them or us."

"Can't we just board up the cat door, then?" said Mr5. "Then they can't get in."

How to explain to a sad little boy that we need them gone? For good. 

"We will just leave it open for one more night so that the other Mousie [still in the housie at this stage] can get out, then it will all be over," said The Builder.

He seemed mollified by this, but went to bed still sad for the 'mousie family', out there waiting for their mousie loved one to come home.

And left me fretting at the notion of a whole CLAN of mousies, out there in the dark, plotting an assault on the pantry. Shudder.

The Builder has cut a piece of ply ready to board up the Mousie Door. The sooner the better I say.

What about you? Any updates you'd like to share - good, bad, covered in fur?


12 comments:

  1. O it's heartbreaking! We had a mouse problem mid-winter and I lived in dread of the kids finding out we were poisoning Angelina Ballerina & Maisie Mouse.
    And seriously, why are so many kids books about mice? It makes one feel very, very guilty!

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    1. They are much cuter in cartoon form than they are in reality...

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  2. About pillows..have you tried using one 'lofty' one and one 'el cheapo' eight dollar pillow. The cheapies flatten quickly and provide just a bit more height than one pillow..they're also good for kids 'cos their heads don't need the extra height. Just a thought.

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    1. We are strictly one pillow each. Even just the one is too lofty. We need to go and buy basic, non-lofty models - or hope these flatten out really quickly!

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  3. Maybe you need to write a book about the mousie family! What a dear little boy your son is!

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  4. Feather and down pillows are the only way to go! (As long as you are not allergic to feathers)

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  5. I was curious about the mouse situation. I think that my Little Miss 4 would be exactly the same as your Mr5.

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  6. Three furry situations here: one kitten who chews everything she can reach, and two pups who are such fabulous diggers that they would be great if I had multiple punnets to plant!
    But at least with them around, I definitely have no worries about our mice problem coming back. good luck with yours.

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  7. Mice are vermin. Cute in fairy tales, but nasty in real life. I like nothing better than the sight of a dead mouse in a trap. That being said, your little boy is very sweet and has a good heart!

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  8. When Olivia started to get all protective of the rodent situation at our place, I sat her down and explained about the Bubonic plague. I bored her to tears. Then told her that it was them or me. Poison down, or Mummy moves out.

    Al - where can I buy a paperback of Alice's Wonderland? Or where can I get an ebook for the iPad? Or is it only available on a Kindle? xx

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    Replies
    1. Paperback will be available next March, at this stage it's on kindle, kobo etc. I think.

      Our mouse seems to have left the house!

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    2. Phew! We have a whole migrant community of them in our external laundry. They eat their "food" (bait) and die off, then another family moves in (behind the beer fridge...) I never see them. It's not in my house. I have to breath and roll with the thought. Breath. And NEVER go to out the laundry after hours...

      (And I shall investigate how to read kindle versions on an ipad - I am sure it must be possible...)

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