On The Group W Bench

Those of you who chatted with me last summer may remember what a stressor it was, what with one thing after another. And if you remember even part of that saga, you may understand our frustration when our one month old dishwasher suddenly quit on us the other day. Thankfully, it turned out to be a loose connection or something. And even the animal lovers among you will understand our complete and utter dismay and over reaction at finding evidence of fresh rodent activity under and behind said brand new dishwasher.

Last summer, in the interest of peaceful coexistence (you stop eating my appliances, I don't kill you), I installed two of those electronic pest deterrents that plug into the outlets. And it actually worked for about a year. It was less worrying than laying out poison that the kids or pets could get into. It was better than having to deal with rodent corpses, or a sick dog or cat who found one before us.

This year, however, DH has gone totally Alice's Restaurant on me. I have an online acquaintance who posts wonderful photos of her pet rats online. I love the expressions, and their little paws as they hold blueberries or write threatening notes to their ratty roommates. But I think even she will forgive DH for wanting to poison the snot out of a wild, possibly diseased, monster who has been known to eat holes in my dishwasher drain hoses on multiple occasions. Not to mention the washing machine wiring.

I am conceding that more drastic measures are needed, and DH is taking over pest control. The local watering hole is under new management, and the name has been changed to the Bates Motel.