El Andalous - Rats!

El Andalous garden

Another day, and another trauma.

I’ve been working busily on my “25 New Year’s Resoutions – For Dogs!” book. I was getting on quite well in the evening, sitting on the sofa (I think I need to find cushions that keep you cool – I always get really hot resting on the cushions, even though the room is a reasonable temperature), and typing away. All of a sudden, I had the sensation that something was pushing my cushion. I let out a scream, turned, and got up, pretty much all in one movement. My arm immediately twinged as I’d put it into the wrong position and I realised that I was standing up but couldn’t really go anywhere because of my foot. I sank back down on the chair and nursed my hurting arm, which was now demanding all my attention. That’s the first time in a while that my frozen shoulder has caused me pain. I looked round but couldn’t see anything, so assumed the cushion must just have slid.

Later, I heard noises in the kitchen. The first few times, I thought things were just sliding of their own accord, but then I spotted the rat sitting on the hob. My heart thumped, I stood up, groped around for my crutches, went to hide in my bedroom, then returned to the lounge, switched the laptop off and stared at the rat that was still sitting there. I yelled at it to go away, but it wasn’t at all bothered; it looked happy. I banged my crutches on the ground, but again, no response.

My heart was still thumping. What should I do? It was almost midnight, but I thought it worth going to the security guy. I hobbled all the way up the corridor, but the guy on nightshift didn’t speak any English. I tried miming a rat, but I think I probably just looked seriously weird. The security guy shook his head and shrugged. I contemplated dragging him to my flat, but then thought the rat would probably have disappeared by the time he got there.

Nervously, I entered my flat again. Something small scuttled across the floor, but the rat had disappeared. I was thirsty, but was too scared to go into the kitchen area, so just went straight to bed. I looked worriedly round the bedroom. If I could limit the rat to the kitchen and lounge and keep the bedroom rat-free, it wouldn’t be so bad. I bolstered the gap underneath the bedroom door with my iron, an empty bin, some towels, and a plastic bag. I didn’t think these would be effective against the rat, but may alert me if it was entering.

Heart thumping, I lay there in bed, listening to every single noise. I thought I felt something on my foot, went to knock it off and then realised it was my foot that was in the cast and so it had just been my imagination. In the kitchen, I could hear things clanging. I thought I heard something scratching at the balcony door, trying to come into my bedroom and then I immediately heard scratching behind my wardrobe. In a flash, I turned on the light, just in time to see a mouse appearing from behind the wardrobe and scuttling into my lounge, going noiselessly through the barricade I’d set up. I felt defeated. Heart thumping, I decided to keep the light on for the rest of the night, partly in the hope that the light may deter the rodents.

I finally drifted off to sleep, woke up, and my leg in the cast had cramp. I guess because I was feeling so tensed up. I couldn’t get comfortable. Then another mouse scurried in through my “barricaded” door to behind the wardrobe. Terrified, I just lay there trying to keep an eye on the door, although I wasn’t sure what good it would do.

The next thing I knew, I was being woken up by my ironing board falling down in my room, followed by a loud hiss, and then a scrabbling behind the wardrobe. By the time I’d sat up, the rat had already disappeared, but I was well and truly petrified by this point. It sounded like an angry and dangerous rat. It was 04:45. I lay awake until sunrise, when I reckoned the rats and mice would have finally gone to rest, but even then I was too wound up to be able to sleep.

My next day would be spent trying to resolve the issue. I wish that I could have just one month completely trouble-free, where I could relax and do whatever I want.