A Mouse in the House!

It's Friday! OMG, I really need a Friday just about now - LOL. Sleep was hard last night, even though I was exhausted, because ... a MOUSE! Apparently a mouse has gotten into the house and managed to get itself caught in the joists of the wall alongside of which I sleep. That furry sucker was trying to find its way out on and off all damned night, and the scurrying of little feet was driving me crazy!

The only mouse "welcome" in my house is Mickey (and Minnie),
but even they have to promise to leave. A mouse in my walls
will be there until it dies and I'll be hearing little feet for a
few more days *sigh*. 

I would have called DH to come down and pointed it out to him, but with his hearing loss, he wouldn't hear it at all and really, what could he do about a mouse in the wall? I have to hope that additional furry critters, (usually a short-time fall issue when the weather gets colder), are caught by the traps we have set in their usual pathways. It's not our first rodeo, but I always hope it's our last because I hate having to deal with rodents in the house!

Cartoon mice were always so cute and inventive. The battles
between Tom and Jerry were epic! 

Of course, it's impossible to fight Mother Nature, and here in the Frozen Northlands, we've been having temps that were unseasonably cold last week and are on the cool side for August this week. We're experiencing September temps in August, so the critters are responding to the days which are already appreciably shorter and the temps that are obviously cooler. Labor Day is approaching fast.

The Frozen Northlands is in the dark blue, but not quite as
dark as Alaske (off to the left side of the main group in
this map). We're not quite to those 40 degree temps yet,
we still have plenty of 60-70 degree days still coming up.
But fall is definitely in the air. 

Why do I care about Labor Day approaching? Labor Day is a watershed day in my personal schedule. It's the last full day of my BFF Sharon's annual visit, and it's also usually the final day for the outdoor Olympic-sized pool to be open. This year, however, schedules will be turned on end when our indoor pool closes for two weeks of repair, maintenance and cleaning, leaving us with only the outdoor pool well into mid-September. It'll be some cold runs out and back to and from the warm water of the big pool, but it's also going to mean dealing with a more crowded pool for longer, before we return to a normal schedule. All the new swimmers who started over the summer will have to get used to those of us who have established lanes and schedules. It'll be a rough few weeks while things get worked out.

See that light blue swath painted across the US? The edge of that is
just about where I'm living. It seems as though my fall could go either
way - below normal or near normal. I'm hoping for near...just sayin'. 

Right now, though, I only have to worry about getting one tree cut down, getting palettes of paver stones delivered and moved, and watching the landscaping happen. Of course, much of this will happen during the same time as the pools will be switched. September is promising to be an interesting and demanding month! Thank goodness I still have half of August to get through first. Happy Friday!