I had an interesting welcome home present. I walked back into my bedroom to put the last of my laundry away and as I came back towards my living room I spotted a brown fluttering flash circling circling circling my living room. I was basically trapped in my bathroom with no means of escape, as this inevitably rabid bat reigned terror in my apartment.
Seeing my phone on the couch, and with nothing else popping to mind, I timed the bat's circling so that I could run into my living room, swipe my phone, and get back into the bathroom before the bat came back.
Some of you probably know, I have a slightly irrational fear of rabies. This fear is valid, I think, based on previous events in my life which I will not divulge at this point in time. But suffice it to say that the reasons are legit.
Anyway, I called my friend IR for some help, since she has had some encounters with bats before. No answer. (Where were you in my time of need??) Then I called my mom. She ingeniously suggested I cover my entire body with clothing to prevent a rabid bat bite and enter the war zone prepared to throw a towel or something else over this menace.
So I clothed myself in snowpants, socks, shoes, my long sleeved EMS running hoody (with thumb holes), an extra flack jacket, and winter gloves. I was ready.
I crouched in the doorway of the bathroom and decided if I could make it to my back door and fling it open, the bat would just fly out. I scooted across the ground to the door and threw it open, jumping outside. But the bat insisted on circling circling circling. I grabbed my laundry basket and a towel and decided to go for it. After a few "near misses" with the laundry basket, however, I resorted to the broom.
I had wanted to stay away from the broom, just because I really didn't want to kill the poor bugger. But I was starting to sweat quite a bit in my bat-suit and chose to end this mess. I swatted. And struck gold! The bat flopped under the corner cabinet so I pulled it out with the broom and it started making loud screeching noises, repeatedly. I deftly threw the entire broom outside, bat and all, solving my problem and winning this war.
I have no clue if that bat is alive or where it came from or how it got in my apartment. But that is a mission for tomorrow.
8 comments:
it was this book, wasn't it?
mim! you could have gotten a face bite! you needed a ski mask i think for full protection.
I'm so sorry. I accidently left my phone at work last night. I suck as a friend. Also, I could have been very helpful to you since: 1)I had a bat in my previous house - funny story if you'll remember! 2)My boss had the entire southern Lancaster County population of bats living in his house at one point - so I had gotten good tips from him! ARGH!
ps: why didn't you call my house phone???
pps: How on earth did a bat get in your apartment? You do realize that this would ONLY happen to you.
Finally, a tennis racket is the perfect tool to combat bats. They fly pretty slowly (albeit erratically) and you can wack them into a wall. Its like playing badminton.
OMG. Can you IMAGINE how I would have reacted if this had happened while I was at your place!!!! Let alone if this had occurred at my place while I was ALONE!!
...I'd be dead right now....you are very brave.
ir took my suggestion - any type of racket is probably your best weapon. i had bats living in my bedroom ceiling when i was a kid and whenever one would make its way out - WHAM! my dad would smack it with a badminton racket (which was kept handy in the house for that purpose).
i hope for your sake that there aren't others...
im really glad i decided to start reading your blog-
Post a Comment