eek?

So, went to Florida a couple of weeks ago—Panama city to be exact. The wife and were looking to cut some the costs of the trip by staying at a cheaper hotel. So we arrived at a fairly nice establishment that appeared to be home to some pretty crazy times during the Spring Break Season…”if only walls could talk.” Regardless, our room was like a typical hotel room with 2 beds and a balcony, but contained an “efficiency kitchen.” Apparently, an efficiency kitchen contains a refrigerator, a small amount of counter space, a sink, a microwave, and something like a playschool-sized stove. Anyway, we arrive, settle in, walk on the beach, visit the pool, get ready for dinner, go to dinner, go grocery shopping, all the normal stuff, and return to the room to enjoy some television before an early bedtime (so as to get up at the crack of dawn and maximize the Florida experience).

Well, if everything after our return from shopping would have went normally, there would be no blog-post about the events I am about to tell. While watching television, an irritating rattle manifested itself from the direction of the “kitchen.” I was quick to write it off in my mind as nothing more than a consequence of an air current. After persisting for some time I decide to eliminate the irritating noise. I walked into the kitchen. The noise stopped. At this point I am certain I feel no air current capable of making such a sound as previously discussed, especially since I am on the opposite side of the room as the air conditioner.

BUT I LIE to myself and to Maddie and say aloud “I think was just the air rattling this aluminum foil under burner on the stove.” I tap the foil a few times to reproduce the sound. Being only a little disturbed I return to the TV and the noise is gone. After a matter of a few minutes, the noise returns…this is quite troublesome. I now know that Maddie and I are not the only guests in room 427. The question is WHO is the 3rd member? Is it a cockroach? A rat? A mouse? A snake? Or some other “critter” not mentioned?

I return to the kitchen and to my great surprise—more accurately fear—I see something move, and to make things better the light above sink will not turn on. I scurry back into the bed area, and try to forget it all by watching TV. For awhile there is stillness in the kitchen.

The noise returns. I rise from the bed, and slowly walk to the edge of the kitchen. The noise stops. I stare intently at the area just below the edge of the front burner closest to me. Something does not seem right. My eyes see a dark object that is not supposed to be there, but my brain tells my eyes they are crazy. And quick sudden movement from the mouse in the burner causes me to jump across the room. If I had been in an Olympic stadium, at the edge of the long jump pit, I am convinced I would have broken the world record for longest jump. After yelling, and realizing I had just leapt the length of 2 beds I quickly called the front desk. We got a new room. “A substantial upgrade” the front desk manager called it. The theme song from the Jefferson’s was in my head as we enter our new room complete will a full-sized kitchen, living area, separate bedroom, and most importantly no mouse. It truly was a “DEElux apartment.”

The moral of the story of this: next time you travel, book the cheapest room in the hotel complex of your choice, buy a mouse from a pet store, set the mouse loose in your room and let run around so that you are genuinely a little scared, then call the front desk for an upgrade…should work like a charm.

A New Love

Well, I have a new love in my life...a kind of second wife, if you will. I have no name for her, but she is a model--a Ford model that is. As strange as it sounds, she was only born in 2004. By now, hopefully, you have discovered that I am writing of a vehicle. My new love is a white, 2004 Ford Ranger. I am quite proud of her even though she is only a 4 cylinder and is an automatic...we all have our flaws, don't we?

This new addition to my heart is due to my passing on of the foCUS to a new caretaker, my sister. The foCUS and I have shared many memories together over nearly 3 years and upwards of 50,000 miles. We have been to Gatlinburg in the WinterFest caravan twice, the Gulf Coast 3 times, Huntsville half-a-dozen times, and to nearly every corner of the Hoosier State. She has treated me right, and been a valuable friend.

Here are a couple of pictures of the new love...