RATS!

So I've been home from the ACC show for a few days now, and the car is still partly loaded. I got about half of it unloaded the day after I came home, and then I lost momentum. On Wednesday, I normally take the kiddo to a little "gymnastics" class, where they learn things like forward and backwards rolls and how to walk on a balance beam. So, I pack up everything, grab the kid and head down to the garage to the car. Just before I plop her into the car seat, I notice all this trash in the back seat and in her car seat. Hmmmm.. Now, as any parent who spends a decent amount of time in the car with their kid will understand, the car seat is not always the tidiest of places. There's usually toys and enough crumbs and foodbits to provide sustenance for at least a full day. But this trash look different. It was in little balls and looked a little fluffy. Like maybe a toy had been ripped apart. It was in the car seat and on the upholstery, next to the car seat. Now, it's kinda dark in the backseat of my car, especially when it's parked in the garage. But I hesitate putting the kid in there because this is kind of weird. Hubby looks in to see what is wrong, and immediately asks: "Kelly, do you have a RAT in your car???" And I respond with, "No, that's silly. Nobody gets rats in their...." and I pause as my eyes fall on the HOLE in the upholstery! Yes, there was an actual hole in the seat, where the seatbelts connect to the seat. And all the stuffing was gone. Oh. My. God. I have a rat in my car?!? I have a name for these rats that we have around here. These rats live in the marsh and are awfully large. I call them BFRs. Excuse my language here, but that stands for Big Fucking Rats. They are just huge. Normally, I'm not afraid of rats or mice or whatever, but if one of these guys ran across my foot while I was driving - yeah. I think I'd freak. I checked the trunk, and sure enough, there's damage in there too, along with some droppings. Nice. I love that smell so much, especially when it's in my car. UGH. Now my car isn't any dirtier or filthier than anyone else's car (well, any parent of a toddler, anyway), but I park right next to our trash cans. We have definitely seen evidence of rats in the trash, and I guess it was an easy, short walk to my car to get all the snacks left by the kiddo in my back seat. How it got in? I have no idea, but obviously, it found a way! WOW, what a thing to find! So, I'm sure you are wondering if I put the kid in there and drove to the class. And the answer is NO. I just couldn't do it. I couldn't stand the thought of my daughter riding along in the rat-seat, staring down at some red-eyed rat as we rode along. No thank you. So I drove hubby's car, and called the exterminator. He's coming out this morning and I can't wait to see his react ion when I tell him what's the problem. Next on the interesting list, is that I had a discussion with another artist at the ACC show (her jewelry is just fantastic, check it out. Erica Stankwytch Bailey) and we were talking about pricing strategies. This is going to be a post on it's own, so I won't go into detail here, but let's just say it is a whole different way of looking at things for me. - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone