Once again this year, bats have paid me their annual visit. Dan was home for the weekend and Friday night he heard them outside my bedroom window. So I did what I've learned to do...close the window so I can't hear them or fear them somehow coming in through the screen! Saturday night, Dan and I sat outside to watch them come out from behind the shutter. Counted about 36 of them. Yup, you read that right! The truth is, they don't bother me if they stay outside. They say they eat about 1,000 mosquitoes in one night...so with 36 of them, the mosquito population around my house is significantly reduced! But I'm keeping an eye on them!!
Sunday evening, after Dan had left, I was watering my flowers. As I returned the hanging basket on the front deck to its hook, I felt a sharp pain in my wrist and realized I was stung by a bee. I could hear bees buzzing but as I looked around the eaves of the house and the hanging basket I could not see any bees nest. I then thought to look under the front deck and sure enough that is where I found a large yellow
jacket nest under the deck. So I sprayed the snot out of that as dusk arrived. Some bees were still swarming outside the nest, so I stood outside and watched the bats come out from behind the shutter while I waited for it to get a little darker. Count some bats, check some bees...
Just before bedtime I noticed a spider on the ceiling in the kitchen. I don't like spiders in my house and so if I see one--they get squished right away. I don't need them hanging over my head ready to drop on me! So I reach up with my bad left arm (not thinking), the spider drops, and I flinch causing a shooting pain in my arm. I didn't think too much of it because just a couple weeks ago I was diagnosed with calcified tendinitis in that shoulder and I just started physical therapy on Thursday. So I took a couple ibuprofen and went to bed.
Just before bedtime I noticed a spider on the ceiling in the kitchen. I don't like spiders in my house and so if I see one--they get squished right away. I don't need them hanging over my head ready to drop on me! So I reach up with my bad left arm (not thinking), the spider drops, and I flinch causing a shooting pain in my arm. I didn't think too much of it because just a couple weeks ago I was diagnosed with calcified tendinitis in that shoulder and I just started physical therapy on Thursday. So I took a couple ibuprofen and went to bed.
Well the pain only only got worse and I couldn't sleep.
I remember when Ed had shoulder pain he would sometimes sleep in the recliner because sitting up relieved the pressure on the shoulder. So I went downstairs around 1 am to try sleeping in the recliner.
I heard a noise a couple times in the kitchen. I finally decide to go check it out. Did I just see something fly by? Yup! A freakin' bat is in the house! Now I'm not totally surprised because at least one, if not two, bats have gotten into the house every July for the past 3 years, why would this year be any different?
I tried to coax him out. I opened the slider door and screen. The bat should "sense" the air and go towards it. Nope...he just keeps flying around and around. In the meantime, I'm hoping none of the other 35 bats outside decide to fly in the open door! I put a fan in front of the door--again to draw the cooler outside air in so the bat will sense it. Nope...he goes into the hallway and disappears. As I look up the stairwell, there he is flying around upstairs. I close the slider and doors to rooms on the first floor. Thankfully I had air conditioners upstairs running so some doors were already closed off. I bravely go up the stairs to find him, hoping he does not decide to swoop down the stairwell at the same time.
He's flying around in Dan's room. Now one option is to go into Dan's room and open a window, remove the screen, and maybe he'll fly out the window. Yeah right... And it's not a large room so it would be like playing Frogger trying to get into the room and to the window without the bat swooping at my head! So I wait in the hallway and watch him. He's not coming out. So I go downstairs to get the bug zapper racket that Dan had bought Ed years ago (and Dan was playing with over the weekend) and head back upstairs. I'm not quite sure why I got the racket other than to protect myself as I headed upstairs by placing the racket in front of my face.
Now mind you, all of this is happening with a bad left shoulder/arm that I can't move! I again watch the bat hoping he will get back downstairs...closer to the slider and into a larger space. He comes out into the hallway and swoops into the stairwell but instead of going downstairs, he returns back to the hallway. For whatever reason, he flew low to the ground...his mistake. Whack! He's down! Whack! Whack! Whack!!! Until he's not moving...or rather, until the racket has broken into many pieces!!
I leave parts of the racket covering him and go and get the real tennis racket downstairs and return to give him a few more whacks. (Sidebar...and I'm sorry...anyone who feels bats should be protected and that I shouldn't have killed him, can next time come over to my house at 1 am and "coax" him out. But after trying to coax him and him not leaving, sorry, the bastard is going to die!!)
So now I can't sleep due to the pain and keeping my eyes open for more bats! After getting about a total of an hour's worth of sleep that night, on Monday morning I call my doctor regarding my shoulder. I have no range of motion and I describe the pain as an 8 on the famous 0-10 scale. I end up getting a cortisone shot. He hopes this will relieve the pain within a few days.
I also bang on the bedroom wall by the shutter where the bats were. No squeaking or rustling noises. They have moved on. Just like they did last year. They stay for a couple days, 1-2 decide to come inside for a visit, and then they move on and are gone. Those damn shutters are coming down though before next July. Maybe that will deter them and they will find some other place to hang out for a couple days. They definitely didn't use the bat house that I hung up for them this year on a tree away from the house. Nope...they like my damn shutter! And the bees are gone...at least in that spot.
And just remember...this all happened in less than a 12 hour period of time!! You just can't make this shit up!!
I heard a noise a couple times in the kitchen. I finally decide to go check it out. Did I just see something fly by? Yup! A freakin' bat is in the house! Now I'm not totally surprised because at least one, if not two, bats have gotten into the house every July for the past 3 years, why would this year be any different?
I tried to coax him out. I opened the slider door and screen. The bat should "sense" the air and go towards it. Nope...he just keeps flying around and around. In the meantime, I'm hoping none of the other 35 bats outside decide to fly in the open door! I put a fan in front of the door--again to draw the cooler outside air in so the bat will sense it. Nope...he goes into the hallway and disappears. As I look up the stairwell, there he is flying around upstairs. I close the slider and doors to rooms on the first floor. Thankfully I had air conditioners upstairs running so some doors were already closed off. I bravely go up the stairs to find him, hoping he does not decide to swoop down the stairwell at the same time.
He's flying around in Dan's room. Now one option is to go into Dan's room and open a window, remove the screen, and maybe he'll fly out the window. Yeah right... And it's not a large room so it would be like playing Frogger trying to get into the room and to the window without the bat swooping at my head! So I wait in the hallway and watch him. He's not coming out. So I go downstairs to get the bug zapper racket that Dan had bought Ed years ago (and Dan was playing with over the weekend) and head back upstairs. I'm not quite sure why I got the racket other than to protect myself as I headed upstairs by placing the racket in front of my face.
Now mind you, all of this is happening with a bad left shoulder/arm that I can't move! I again watch the bat hoping he will get back downstairs...closer to the slider and into a larger space. He comes out into the hallway and swoops into the stairwell but instead of going downstairs, he returns back to the hallway. For whatever reason, he flew low to the ground...his mistake. Whack! He's down! Whack! Whack! Whack!!! Until he's not moving...or rather, until the racket has broken into many pieces!!
I leave parts of the racket covering him and go and get the real tennis racket downstairs and return to give him a few more whacks. (Sidebar...and I'm sorry...anyone who feels bats should be protected and that I shouldn't have killed him, can next time come over to my house at 1 am and "coax" him out. But after trying to coax him and him not leaving, sorry, the bastard is going to die!!)
So now I can't sleep due to the pain and keeping my eyes open for more bats! After getting about a total of an hour's worth of sleep that night, on Monday morning I call my doctor regarding my shoulder. I have no range of motion and I describe the pain as an 8 on the famous 0-10 scale. I end up getting a cortisone shot. He hopes this will relieve the pain within a few days.
I also bang on the bedroom wall by the shutter where the bats were. No squeaking or rustling noises. They have moved on. Just like they did last year. They stay for a couple days, 1-2 decide to come inside for a visit, and then they move on and are gone. Those damn shutters are coming down though before next July. Maybe that will deter them and they will find some other place to hang out for a couple days. They definitely didn't use the bat house that I hung up for them this year on a tree away from the house. Nope...they like my damn shutter! And the bees are gone...at least in that spot.
And just remember...this all happened in less than a 12 hour period of time!! You just can't make this shit up!!
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| The remains of the racket. Sorry Dan...I'll buy you a new one. |
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