And on it goes

Still they roam!   We're averaging 2.5 a day.  The method is always the same --- the traps are baited with poison.   Most of the mice are caught in the same place -- the infamous drawer.

They aren't coming in because of the cold because it's quite warm still.  

One ran across the floor beside me today and ran into a little chest of drawers.  It has solved the mystery of how they get in there.  There are 3 drawers and beneath the bottom drawer is a panel of wood.  It's just a false facade and the mouse jumped over the top of it and into the drawer from inside.

So Easter is over and school starts again tomorrow.  Winter won't be far away.  We haven't yet decided to go to Moree this year, as Steve's Mother isn't very well.   I can't picture staying here for winter.  It has been many years since we have done that.  And we don't have any winter clothes!

Along with everyone else, we haven't got any firewood yet.  We still waiting on the Dept of something and something to issue permits.  May autumn be a long, warm one!

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~

How well it works!!!

Every day this week, we have caught at least one mouse in the same drawer.  On a few days, one mouse would be emptied out, the trap reset and the next mouse caught within 15 minutes.  We're still using the pellet stuck in peanut butter.  That pellet must taste super good!!  We gave up counting mice many weeks ago. I can't think how many we must have obliterated by now.      Probably close to 150 in traps and how many more must have been killed off by the pellets!  I'm not sure that we even keep up with the birth rate though!!!!!

I met a stranger in the supermarket who said how she had come to have sympathy for the mice and loved their sweet little faces.  I don't let myself even linger over that thought.   If I start to like them, I won't be able to catch them.  

In some strange madness that came over me many years ago when Rachel was about 10, I let her keep white mice.   I can still hear their little squeals and the endless squeaking of the ever revolving wheel.  And the stink!  I will never learn to tolerate that smell.  I wonder how Rachel would react now, to this plague of mice in my house???

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~

 

 

This time it must have been Minnie!!!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There she was, caught reaching for the green pellet in the trap.

Byeee

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~


 

He left a big footprint

RIP Birdie

When Steve returned from town this afternoon, he found Birdie lying dead on the road.  He was hit by a vehicle on the mid line of the road, right opposite our drive.  I don't know if he was leaving or returning home.

It's interesting ----- Birdie was with us for only a short time but he made a big impact on our lives.  We looked for him many times a day and chatted with him.  It was exciting to get up in the morning and still find him here.  He was a topic of conversation with other people.  We brought up the Blog on Betty's computer yesterday, so that she could see the photos of him.

I'm sad. 

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~

 .

Master of all I survey!

In the yard at the side of the house.

After wandering around the front and sides of the house, Birdie then went to the back, where he decided to have a nap in the sun.  After that, he just sat up and surveyed the world, looking towards us whenever we spoke.  

Is he sitting on his elbows or his knees??

The next photos show Steve taking a drink of water to him.

We are concerned that he might be drinking the pooled flood water in the paddock.  It has been stagnant there since January and it brought a lot of rubbish with it when it came down.

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~

Call the Engines!!

Fire!  Fire!

Next door to us is an old abattoir, once used for processing the dead animals from farms.

The owner is unknown to us. He has been away for at least 3 years.  He arrived back here when the floods started and has given the impression that he plans to stay.   I.E ---- he painted the number of his "house" on his letterbox.   His house is just a collection of old sheds. 

Steve noticed him lighting a fire and saw him leave the place a while later.  Shortly after, one fire engine arrived and then another.  Up until then, we hadn't noticed any smoke but as soon as water went on it, smoke billowed thickly.    We went out for the evening and the smoke was still thick when we returned.  There was a fire still burning at the back of his place but no sign of him.   The smoke was acrid --- rubber tyres, we guessed.    

I suppose he'll find out when he gets back home.

Unless he has gone away for another few years.

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~

Thursday's visitor

When Steve walked down to the mailbox this morning, he found this lovely visitor.

It's only a baby and we don't know where it came from.   It's very tame and responded to us when we called.   It's curious and will walk up quite close to us.

It's in the paddock at our back fence so we watched it all day.   At one point, a very noisy truck went by.  The emu leapt into the air, spun around and then took off in the opposite direction at a great rate of knots.

We do hope that it's still here tomorrow.

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~

M. I. C.-- K. E. Y. ......... M. O. U. S. Eeeeee

This is how I think it went..............

Minnie made an appointment for Mickey to see an optometrist, as she was worried about his eyes.  Being a male, Mickey was reluctant and presented every excuse under the sun.  Minnie went behind his back and made the appointment for a month's time, telling Mickey that she had organised a romantic dinner for them.   She relaxed and was happy in the knowledge that in a month, Mickey would get glasses and would see properly.  Mickey relaxed, believing that he had had the last word on the subject --- there was nothing wrong with his eyes and he would not be seeing an optometrist.

That settled, they prepared for a nice relaxing night in the drawer.   Mickey stretched out on the picnic blanket while Minnie went into a corner for a poo.  She returned quite hungry and suggested to Mickey that they could gather some of the nice green pellets from the big tree.  

Wanting to look like a modern SNAG, Mickey told Minnie to make herself comfortable on the blanket and he would pick the green pellets.

He set off, stumbling over everything in his path, blind as a bat.  Finally he arrived at the big black tree on which grew the yummy green pellets.   Remembering Minnie's words about not damaging the tree, he decided that it would be best if he just sprang lightly towards the green pellets.  He could grab some and spring back without harming the tree.  He danced forward.  

The last thing he saw was a branch of the tree falling sharply down on him.  His last thoughts were of Minnie and her insistence that he needed glasses.

Well ....... that's how I think it all happened!!!  

We didn't hold a funeral.   

Steve just flung him over the back fence.
And reset the trap with green pellets stuck in peanut butter.

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~

This takes the cake! (More correctly, takes the bait.)

For some time, we have been making jokes about the drawer containing the wash cloth, trap and poison.  Every day I clean the droppings and the poison pellets from off the wash cloth, so that I can see when they return.  

It's my experiment.  Or so I say, to prevent myself from going quite, quite mad.

We talk about how the young Mickey invites his sweetheart Minnie to go for a picnic with him.  Mickey spreads the picnic blanket and they both go off to gather the fresh green pellets which taste so good.  They spread the pellets on the picnic blanket and tuck in.  For reasons unknown, they always leave a few pellets on the blanket.  

Perhaps this is a generous gesture for friends who might wander by?

Yesterday, I had a bright idea.  I cleaned off their picnic blanket and removed the trap and box of pellets.  Steve put a little peanut butter on the trap, using it as a base to stick in a bunch of pellets.  It looked like a little green hedgehog.  We put the trap on their picnic blanket and giggled at the thought of them going for the pellets and getting guillotined!

This morning, we eagerly hurried to investigate the drawer, wondering if we might have been lucky enough to catch both Mickey and his lover.

NO, we did not.

Instead ...........

There were a couple of pellets on the picnic blanket and the rest had been eaten out of the trap, without setting it off.  The peanut butter remained in it, untouched.

You can see what happened, can't you???   

Minnie said to her hero, "Oh look, our lovely green food is growing on that strange tree."  Mickey replied, "Now we must be very careful.  As dedicated Greenies, we must make sure not to destroy the tree."   So, very carefully, they crept around the trap, reaching in for the delicious green food and laying it out carefully on their picnic blanket.  

Mind you, I wouldn't put it past them to set off the trap with a stick, pick out the pellets and then re-set the trap.

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~

Of Mice and Men

Many years ago, Steve went into hospital to have polyps removed from his nose.   The reasonably simple operation became very difficult when the surgeon rang me from the theatre and asked me was there any reason why Steve kept bleeding!    They managed to remove a couple of polyps but had to stop because of the profuse bleeding.  Steve was left with a stuffy nose and no sense of smell.

Where am I leading with this?

He can't smell the bloody mice, that's where!!!!

I have been sniffing on either side of the fridge for nearly 2 weeks now.  It was putrid.   Of course, Steve could smell nothing.  Nor could either of my Home Helpers.  Nor could the visitors I had at the weekend.  

WHAT IS WRONG WITH THESE PEOPLE???  

I have spent a lifetime explaining to people how to clean out their sinuses but do they heed me??  Not on your nelly! 

Once more --------  make up a solution of tepid, salty water.  The idea is to sniff it up through a nostril.  I use a syringe and squirt it up.  Do one nostril at a time and close the other one off with a finger.  Sniff strongly through the nostril as the water goes through.

NOW HERE'S THE HARD PART. but it gets much easier with practice.

As the water hits the back of your throat, and immediately before you throw up, give a big hawk and spit the water out of your mouth.  Do this with both nostrils until you have emptied a small tumbler of water.  Repeat every few hours.   Bit by bit, you will begin to hawk out the contents of your sinuses.  On one occasion, I found that the mucous in the sinuses had compacted into a hard tube, 6" long.  The procedure then was to hawk and pull the tube gently, repeat.  Try very hard not to puke.

Today, Steve was fed up with me inviting strangers in to smell beside my fridge.  He said that it was undignified to put signs up at the highway, inviting people to come up and sniff.  Just kidding.   Anyway, he hauled the fridge out from it's cubbyhole and ................

WE GOT OUT 3 DEAD MICE.

One of them was in the dish that contains water.  This isn't a dish that has to be emptied but it seems to heat up.  This goes a long way towards explaining why the smell was much stronger at times!!!

OMG ----   This is nearly as bad as the mouse that crawled into the spaghetti cooker.    Why don't I have blocked sinuses like everyone else around me???    Because I sniff the bloody salty water, that's why.  I'm surrounded by wimps.

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~

Growing old is optional?????

When I was 10, I thought that 20 was old and 50 was ready for death.

When I was 20, I realised that some people managed to live into their nineties but I still thought that 40 was quite old.

As I passed each of the milestones, I tried to work out why my Mother and Grandmother seemed to be so old, at the same age.  The answer is obvious, of course......  I was always  22 and 44 years younger than they were and naturally I felt younger.

Now, the unthinkable has happened!!   I was 68 last week.  That's nearly 70.  70 is definitely old, (especially as my Mother and Grandmother are long dead.)   I am now, officially OLD.   Yet, I just don't feel old.  I often think about lessons I might learn in future years; about courses I might take; places I want to see; people I plan to visit.  

Now, when it would be good for the years to slow down, they are galloping along.  One Christmas rolls seamlessly into the next.   PHOOEY.

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~

It's twins!!!

No, not twin mice --- don't be silly.

Our nephew Matt and his partner Emma, are having identical twins at the end of October.  We don't yet know the sex of the babies.

Matt's Mother and sister came with Matt and Emma to stay with us at the weekend.  The main objective was to give the good news to the twins' Great Grandmother.  We enjoyed having everyone here and the GG enjoyed her meal in the restaurant and lunch with us the next day.

~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~--~~