Wrong way out!

Dear faithful followers of this blog ... all three of you,

You may remember my little mate M's explorations that led him to take up periodical accommodation behind the washing machine here at Rovers Retreat. Yes, the one with the mousetrap. Well, the mousetrap is no more, much to M's delight, and I can safely say that he has now decided to camp there permanently.

Oh, how he loves sleeping in that tiny, dark, cramped, not-so-secret spot. Better than behind Jenny's chair where he runs the risk of being squished like a ... well ... like a mouse in a mousetrap every time she tries to get up from the table.

M's lucky he has a hideaway from which he can come and go. Not so the unfortunate little critters that chose to hang out in the fascia surrounding our Retreat.

We first heard them around 8:30 am. A fluttering and a scampering, making a heck of a racket. I whimpered and whined until we were let outside to investigate, and after a quick auditory and visual exploration around the perimeter, we concluded that indeed, they were trapped.

'What can we do?' we both thought while trying to locate the source of their entry.

"Ah, there it is!" declared M. An access point so small that only a tiny little critter could fit.

After some discussion, we concluded that it was either birds, squirrels or chipmunks. And apart from ripping down the entire roofing, there wasn't much we or anyone could do to help them find their way out.

Nevertheless, we got the old gang together to see if anyone had experience with this find of thing. The general consensus was that perhaps the critters were on a mission, and given the lack of space up there, we would just have to wait and see if they found their way out again.

Not easy to do when you can hear their apparent efforts to escape throughout the entire house.

Then Carli Crow came by with her pals, E. A. and Cheryl, and set up watch at the access point. They speculated that if they could talk the critters out, it might be all they need to find their way through the maze.

And doggone it, it worked! Before much longer, the fluttering stopped completely, and Carli reported that all lost souls had found freedom. Cheryl told us later that on their way out, the two sparrows got some stern talk from Carli about staying out of other people's homes - for their own safety, and our peace of mind!

Sadly, or rather fortuitously, the afternoon and the evening passed without incident. The wind continued to blow, hard, and it was so cool that the heat came on!

Not that M noticed ... he was camped out behind the washing machine for most of the day as if nothing else in the world mattered!

T