Oh rats, a mouse!

I fell asleep in the recliner the other night. That rarely happens, but I was so tired that I ended up dozing off while watching TV. Everyone else was in bed; the living room was lit only by the TV, which by this time was showing something that comes on well after the local news. To be honest, I can’t remember what channel I was even watching when I dozed off.

The sound of a “thud” behind me ,followed by some stifled meows and other rustling sounds awoke me from my slumber.

It took me a few seconds to fully wake up and when I did, I was in for quite a shocking sight.

In the twilight of the TV, my eyes focused in on our cat that was walking in front of the recliner, with something in his mouth.

At first I thought he was playing with a toy of his or one of my children. Both of them seem to leave their toys all over the house anyway, so why not. Plus, he has been known to become rather playful at night and cause a ruckus that can wake the dead.

As he walked into the kitchen, I suspected that it was no toy at all, but in fact….A MOUSE. A toy does move like a real mouse can and by the looks and sounds of the action in the kitchen, this was a live one.

I am not a fan of rodents, reptiles or anything creepy-crawly. I cringe when I see things that slither, slide, hiss or otherwise.

And while I really hate possums, snakes and spiders, a mouse, especially when it is dark and you wake up to the drama unfolding before your eyes, it is a little unnerving. Oh, did I mention I hate possums?

The little critter escaped the clutches of our vicious “watch-cat” who was more interested in playing with the mouse than killing it. And as luck would have it, he took refuge behind the refrigerator.

Not wanting the mouse to escape, I woke my wife up to assist in the fun of catching this little pest. As you know, trying to catch a greased pig is probably easier than catching a quick little mouse that can squeeze into places you never knew existed.

A half-hour later, the little mouse was shown the door, literally. After scurrying behind an end table, my wife opened the front door and out he hopped.

Breathing a sigh of relief, we went to bed knowing we were mouse free.

We opted not to tell our girls about it for fear they may freak out. However, two mornings later we were left with no choice as our cat pranced through the living room with the same little mouse in his mouth. Awkward!

I knew we were too kind just sending him on his merry way the night before. It is almost like we sent him off to school with his backpack and said “see you later”.

That little creature escaped my clutches that morning as we had to leave for work, but precautions have been placed around the house should he be brave enough to wander out again.

I am not a fan of rodents, not at all. I am just glad that my daughters were too distracted to realize how freaked out their dad was over that tiny little thing!

I just hope for my sake and that of the mouse, that he has moved on and moved out. There is a no vacancy sign hanging on my door for his kind.