Melonade

My roommate and I set the trap Saturday afternoon, which was more difficult than we expected. By Saturday night, I knew that we had something trapped up there. He scratched all night long. Around 3 I finally gave up on a decent night's sleep and stuffed cotton balls in my ears to drown him out.

Sunday afternoon, I got back on the ladder to see how angry our visitor was. But it turns out it wasn't a squirrel after all. It was much bigger than a squirrel...more raccoon-sized.

Okay, it was a raccoon.

That's right. We had our very own raccoon in the attic! And let me say, I wasn't expecting to have a face-to-face encounter with a raccoon in my bedroom. Forest, maybe, but not bedroom.

Stacey's got some fun pics and a few more details on her blog.

At least the raccoon smell is finally gone. Thank you, Febreze! I couldn't have done it without you.

The Gold Star Award (and lots of cookies, I think) goes to Jay for removing our furry friend and taking him back to nature.

Enjoy your day.

You may have heard that Stacey and I have a squirrel in our attic. At least, we hope it's just a squirrel. Sometimes it sounds like a person is tromping around up there. Maybe the little guy's just practicing his acrobatic maneuvers.

I hadn't heard him scratching around in a couple of weeks, but last night he made it clear that he is still an attic-dweller. Stacey saw him in the backyard a few days ago and warned him to stay away, but he didn't listen. Just as I was about to drift off to sleep at 1 a.m., I heard the familiar rustling above my bed. Two things made me very irritated: 1) that I was still awake when all I wanted to do was sleep, and 2) that the rodent had the audacity to rustle directly above my bed instead of by the window where I heard him last time. C'mon buddy, give a girl a break. If you must hide out in the attic, at least respect other people's bedtimes. I was awake for another half hour trying to ignore his noises. Even if it was snowing last night, he could have been quieter.

No, I haven't disappeared.

With all the holidays and moving and visits from friends and whatnot, blogging hasn't been high on the priority list. In fact, for the last month it probably ranked just above scrubbing my bathroom. But that's okay. Most of the people who read this get to see me in person (if not on a regular basis, then at least on very special occasions), and so we're caught up.

I've been officially moved into the new place for about a week and a half. It feels really good to be out of my scary apartment-hood. I've traded noisy neighbors at all hours for a squirrel in the attic whose visits are rare. It's not a bad trade.

I'm also the proud new owner of a digital camera, which I plan to use to the fullest when I have a free Saturday.

As for New Year's resolutions, mine is a re-dedication to the novel, which was unfortunately put on hold while I was packing, moving, and unpacking. I'm giving myself until April 1st to finish the second draft. Two thoughtful friends gave me new journals for Christmas, so I have a lot of writing to do. Plus, the new bedroom has a perfect desk-sized nook with a window. That's where I'll be until the spring.