It Has Finally Happened

After hearing all the stories about the bad mouse problem in Amsterdam, we finally have our very own mouse problem. Although there is no evidence in the form of droppings or chewed up food containers or chair legs, Erin witnessed the presence of a mouse with her own eyes in the kitchen last night. Of course Erin had to be the one walking into the kitchen to be greeted by a scurrying mouse because John is not actually at the apartment enough to have such an encounter. It's interesting that just the knowledge that a mouse appeared does not have quite the same effect on John (who also is not in the apartment for 15 hours of the day) as the effect on Erin of actually seeing the little critter. Without actually seeing the mouse it is easy enough to forget about the whole thing. Erin still gingerly enters the kitchen, making as much noise as possible at all times. Three traps have been set, but there have been no casualties yet.

In fact, the more Erin thinks about the mouse scurrying along under the kitchen cabinets, the more she thinks the tail on that thing was really long. Maybe what we have is more like a rat than a mouse! How long does one wait to call an exterminator to come put out poison? We have it on good authority that an exterminator will come place poison boxes around the apartment for only €45. Erin has to admit she has not talked to anyone in Amsterdam who has actually caught a mouse in a mouse trap. The poison is seeming better and better, especially since most evenings, when mice are most likely to venture out, Erin is home by herself.

Erin is currently pondering which she hates more: rodents or cockroaches. That's a tough call. For those of you not from the Southern U.S., by cockroaches Erin means the huge 3-inch kind that fly. Maybe rodents win the most-hated battle since cockroaches, at least individually, can be killed more easily, are not as fast, do not consume household items, and don't leave behind evidence of their presence. Uuuggghhh.

On a different note, Erin attended another free lunchtime concert today with Annette and another wife of an Ernst & Young employee who just moved here from Istanbul, Turkey. This week the concert was a piece by Brahms (whom Erin has heard of), played by a clarinet, cello, and piano trio. This might become a weekly event, at least until June.

If anyone has sure-fire ways to get rid of rodents, please let us know.