update on the unwanted visitor

So, when we last tuned in, the rat was still leaving a mess for me.

That was on Sunday.

Monday morning found another mess, but not quite as bad.

The mess was also in the sunroom, not the kitchen, so I counted that as progress.

I placed an empty peppermint oil bottle by the back door, in case it had used that as a egress from my house. 

I also made the hallway redolent of that oil, to dissuade the vermin from entering that area.

Tuesday morning greeted me with this sight, again in the kitchen.

No sign of the beast on the counters or the stove, so that was reassuring.

No sign of it having gone near the bathroom or hall or open Ocean Room.

Good, good, and good.

I made sure to stop by Food Lion on my way home from appointments at the Savannah VA with my optometrist, Peter Urban, and my nutritionist, Elizabeth Carley.

I bought four more bottles of the peppermint oil.

I came home, after seeing a movie, and heard no little rat noises.

That's because I left the TV on, as well as lights in the sunroom and kitchen.

Good tip for the future.

Then I pulled out the cotton batting and threw it away.

It looked like the intruder had left its scent all over it... ugh.

Taking a clean cloth, I laid a double layer of lavender-scented anti-static sheets in its center, along the length, then folded the cloth by thirds.

Perfect for laying under the kitchen cabinets!

I also sprinkled some peppermint oil on the fabric, too.

Then, I reinforced the placement of the cloth with plastic yogurt containers from the recycling bag, then braced the red plastic container at one end and the heavy glass bowl at the other.

I'm hoping to wake up and find no change to this barrier.

I'm also going to leave the bathroom light on all night.

What about the electric rat trap?

The rat hasn't touched it once.

I've moved it to other areas, but I'm leaving it in the sunroom.

Here's hoping for future peaceful nights.

That would be a nice change.