Not A Dalek But — EXTERMINATE! #ThursdayDoors

So #4 Daughter (the amazing Sara Marian) and another archaeologist are living in Mom’s old house, and they’re being overrun by ants and snakes. Ring-neck snakes, you know — little, non-poisonous ones that the young women just pick up with their bare hands and toss out. If only the snakes would eat the ants, but no.

So I called the exterminator and made an appointment. While I was there, I took pictures of doors, because of course I did.

He went into the attic to bait for mice, because the snakes were probably after mice.

And how the heck were snakes getting in? The animal control expert I hired for advice said they climb up the outside of the house and come down the chimney.

And where do they come out into the house?

Freyja knows. She sits guard day and night.

I took a picture of this corner cabinet with doors top and bottom when this house was Mom’s house. When Mom passed, the cabinet moved to our house, then to Sara’s house in Louisville, and now it’s back in this house with Sara.

Duty done, I left by the front door, which I think is very pretty.

Thursday doors is under the direction of Dan Antion, photographer extraordinaire and critter daddy. Visit his site, enjoy his wonderful photographs, follow his directions, and enter a world of doors.

A WRITING PROMPT FROM ME TO YOU: Something moves around.

MA

About

I was born in Louisville, Kentucky, but now live in the woods in southern Indiana. Though I only write fiction, I love to read non-fiction. The more I learn about this world, the more fantastic I see it is.

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One thought on “Not A Dalek But — EXTERMINATE! #ThursdayDoors

  1. Dan Antion

    October 14, 2021 at 10:09am

    Wonderful doors. creepy thoughts, but wonderful doors. I like the corner cabinet the best.

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  2. acflory

    October 14, 2021 at 8:48pm

    -shudder- I don’t like snakes of any variety, even non-poisonous ones. Does Freja have a cat door? Is it possible they’re pushing their way in that way? Horrible thought as my guys have a cat/dog door as well. Nevertheless, all the other ‘possibilities’ are clearly impossible. Not a pleasant mystery. :/

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    • Author

      Marian Allen

      October 15, 2021 at 11:08am

      Freyja doesn’t have a cat door, but the screen doors don’t fit air-tight, so they might come in that way. The animal control guy was pretty stuck on their climbing the house and hunting mouse nests in the attic, then getting lost down the chimney. He said if Sara and Dora USED the chimney, it would be less likely that the snakes would come down it, even when it wasn’t burning. So they’re looking into that. Meanwhile, they’re putting netting over those louvers on either side of the fireplace. At least they don’t have ghosts, which my first renters claimed.

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      • acflory

        October 15, 2021 at 9:13pm

        To be honest, I had no idea that snake could climb. Trees, yes, obviously…but vertical walls? Does your Mum’s house have an under floor space?
        We lived in a rental for 10 years and mice/rats? used to get in from underneath and climb the space between the outer brickwork and the inner plasterboard. used to make a terrible racket at night. If mice can get in from underneath then snakes could too. Btw the house had no fireplaces at all so there was no chimney they could come in through.

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        • Author

          Marian Allen

          October 16, 2021 at 11:47am

          Mom’s house has a poured cement full basement. At least Charlie blocked the raccoons. She used to have those in the attic, and they are NOISY.

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          • acflory

            October 17, 2021 at 4:13am

            Gah…well they certainly can’t burrow through concrete. Are there overhanging trees? And she had raccoons as well? -jaw drops-

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            • Author

              Marian Allen

              October 17, 2021 at 9:47am

              We live in the woods, so there are definitely overhanging trees. Mom’s house is a critter magnet. She used to have lizards once in a while, and one time dirt daubers (a stingless wasp) got into the attic and ate through the kitchen ceiling. I have a photograph of a groundhog up at her front screen door, having a staring contest with her cat. lol!

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              • acflory

                October 18, 2021 at 12:14am

                Wow…that is seriously ‘in touch with nature’! We’ve had the odd visitor but nothing regular since the poor little fox died. I think Mogi’s yapping keeps most critters away.

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                • Author

                  Marian Allen

                  October 18, 2021 at 8:26am

                  At least most of the critters #1 Daughter’s house and this house see stay outside. We’re just as much in the woods as Mom’s house, but they just love it down there. We even had a cat — a marmalade named Roger — who moved in down there while Charlie was still building it and wouldn’t leave. When Mom and Grandma and Grandpa moved in, they already had a resident cat.

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                  • acflory

                    October 18, 2021 at 6:54pm

                    Charlie built your Mum’s house? Wow again. I wonder what it is about the place that attracts the critters so much. It’s lovely that the house now has a third generation of the family living in it. -hugs-

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                    • Author

                      Marian Allen

                      October 19, 2021 at 1:44pm

                      Charlie built our house, too. He was a Renaissance Man: a teacher of English and Humanities AND a builder/remodeler AND a handyman. I lost about fifty people when I lost him.

                    • acflory

                      October 20, 2021 at 8:10pm

                      -huge hugs- I truly wish I could have known him better, Marian. Keep talking about him.

                    • Author
  3. Jean Reinhardt

    October 14, 2021 at 9:32pm

    Oh wow. Snakes in the house. We don’t have any in Ireland but we do have mice. Your mother’s corner cabinet is gorgeous and well travelled. The photo of the cat on guard in front of the vent is very good.

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  4. sustainabilitea

    October 14, 2021 at 10:03pm

    We had a similar attic door in our house in Ohio, built in the mid-thirties. But thankfully we had no snakes although we did get mice in the basement periodically. We were able to trap them, though, but not always before they’d eaten into something that didn’t belong to them. πŸ™

    janet

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    • Author

      Marian Allen

      October 15, 2021 at 11:10am

      I’d rather have non-poisonous snakes than mice. Although I don’t know what snake poop looks like; maybe it’s worse. Oh, Mr. Google….

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    • Author

      Marian Allen

      October 15, 2021 at 11:13am

      Sara and I had a hearty laugh over Ssssanta Claussssse, with his tiny little Santa hat and a bag of toys clutched in a coil of his tail.

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  5. Teresa

    October 15, 2021 at 9:00pm

    I always thought what it felt like to have an attic.

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    • Author

      Marian Allen

      October 16, 2021 at 11:45am

      It’s like having your own treasure ship. I forget what’s up there so when I go and look it’s always a happy surprise. πŸ™‚

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