August 2025 Island Trip – Day 2

Today was packed with more mouse remediation. Stella feels livable again, both in terms of pest invasion and getting the voluminous numbers of items put away. Anything that is in paper or cardboard packaging in is some sort of Tupperware. I defy anyone to tell me that having a penchant for containers is a bad thing. There are sticky traps in drawers and cabinets that now house fewer items in them. I have also deployed anti-rodent sachets behind walls and drawers. The place is smelling like an apothicary. Paul, our pest guy, has added us to his schedule. He’ll be out be Tuesday or Wednesday.

The cat had an existential crisis today… When I got up (late) he was not anywhere to be seen and didn’t come when I called him. By late-morning I was sure he had escaped.. We just put an apple tag on him. After lunch I took my DH’s phone and started tracking him. He was supposedly in the field across from the house. The tracking showed me right on top of him, yet he was no where to be found, nor was he responding to treats being rattled in a stainless steel cup. At this point I assumed he dropped his collar. I trudged back to the trailer, tired and defeated. As I walked up beside Stella, my DH leaned out and hollered my name. He hadn’t seen me walk up. The cat had been in some crevice under the couch, and the Apple tag is a piece of shit. It was showing him a good 500’ away from where he actually was. The cat retreated back under the couch the minute I stepped inside, was impervious to treats and stayed there until 4 in the afternoon. 🐈‍⬛🙄

After a run to town for, mainly fish, it was time to shift my focus and try to calm down. It’s amazing to me how much actual and emotional disruption fucking (that is their main life purpose) mice can cause. Ed was due for dinner in a couple of hours and yellow fin tuna, which I’ve never cooked, was the freshest fish I could find. The seafood barge at the port was closed, and my choices were limited. Having Stella put back together was a help. I got things prepped for dinner, my DH helped me get things set up outside for snacks and chats, and the tuna was great.