We had an intruder last night. Don't worry -- it wasn't human. No, it was far, far from that. This had wings and likely fangs. It was a f&%*$@g bat. Our second bat during our tenure here. Dammit.
I understand that bats and other critters, namely mice, are a byproduct of century-old homes. But it's hard to accept their presence when they literally go bump in the night.
Early this morning, I had to wake Ben up because I thought a burglar was picking the lock downstairs. It's nights like this when I want to equip myself with a stun gun -- burglar or bat, that fool is going down. After disposing of the bat, we were up until nearly 2:30 a.m. watching an old episode of The Office so we could forget the swooping black beast. (I know bats have their benefits, but not when their flying into your face.)
After getting about 45 minutes of shut-eye, I woke up to the sound of the patter of little feet, scampering back and forth inside the wall and ceiling in our bedroom. Do you remember the post about the critters last summer? I'm not certain they ever disappeared. We heard them a few times this winter and for the last few weeks, they've been very active at night. This morning, they went back and forth for about an hour and a half. I seriously considered punching a hole in the wall and "disposing" of those damn critters myself. Cooler thoughts prevailed.
I e-mailed our landlord. Then I followed it up with a phone call to make sure he read every details. Turns out he's traveling in France, but didn't say a peep about it to Ben or me. We're getting a quote tomorrow for a pest control company -- not Orkin (because they're obviously not doing their job here) -- and asking our landlord if we can take care of the problem ourselves, provided he reimburse us.
Here's the much-too-long text of my e-mail:
Hi Andrew,
We had an intruder last night. I woke up around 1 a.m. to what sounded like someone breaking into the house. It turned out to be a bat. We're positive it didn't come through the kitchen chimney, as the previous bat did. Still, we're unsure how it got into the house. Our two main theories on how it entered the house:
-- Through the upstairs utility room. The door does not fit snugly, and therefore, there is a huge (big enough for a bat) gap between the bottom of the door and the carpet. It's also possible it could have gotten into the house through that room and traveled in the vent system. The vents in the bedroom and living room are wide enough for a bat -- or other critter -- to exit them. We propose adding some kind of mesh to prevent this from happening.
-- Through the back or front door. The front door does not close all of the way, so it'd be easy for a bat to hide out in the porch.
After we removed the bat, we investigated the upstairs area because we heard more noises (and thought someone could have broken into the house). Turned out to be the critters. We heard them near the utility room, the ceiling and the west wall.
We woke up around 3 a.m. again to more noise. The critters traveled back and forth along the eastern wall in the bedroom and in the ceiling. They didn't stop for over an hour.
I know you stopped by recently, but we have been hearing the critters for weeks, sometimes several nights a week. We're wondering if you could arrange for Orkin to come when one of us is home. That way, we can show Orkin -- or you -- exactly where we're hearing the animals. I will be home until 2 p.m. Monday.
If the bat and critters weren't bad enough, Ben thinks he saw a mouse yesterday in the living room.
Sorry for all of the drama! But we wanted to make you aware -- for your sanity and ours:)
Brady
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