Something to Start Out Your Day Well

Here's something fun:  This morning, on the way to work, two GIANT rats ran across the street I live on.  In the half-light of an early morning sunrise, no less.  These rats were not just running across the street in the dark, certain no one could see them.  No, these were brazen rats, willing to risk imminent car death or sight by human.  They were running in opposite directions, one across the street into the park, and the other towards all the apartment buildings, which is sort of sickening to think about.  I hope the wolves at the LP Zoo eat those rats. 

It's not like I didn't know that there were rats in big cities, because before I moved downtown, I saw those ugly rat warning posters around my sister's apartment building (you enter her building sort of off an alley, which makes the rat thing all the more understandable.).  I don't know if you've ever seen one of those Chicago rat posters (I looked for an image online, but couldn't find one), but those yellow posters make rats look like evil man-eating rodents.  Like those giant rats in The Princess Bride.   Really, the rats in those posters look like if you walk into one of their zones, they'll start gnawing at your ankles the minute you come near. 

But I'd never really seen a rat, prior to this.  I think we may have seen one from the bus once, but we weren't sure, and I certainly didn't get a good look at it.   And before that, definitely nothing.  And it's not like today's sighting was so horrible.  I was safe in my car, and those rats were just running in front of it.  I've never had an up close and personal encounter with a rat, and I'm pretty grateful for that.  It's possible that rats might take up residence in my garage, I guess.  It's not the most hospitable place, and the condo association seems to do a pretty good job with the pest control of all kinds, so most likely no rat infestation.  And since I don't exit out of or enter into an alley to get into my garage, my contact with los ratones is probably going to be limited anyway.

But still.  Yick.  I don't need to see anymore rats running in the direction of my apartment building.

Comments

[Scott]

When I was living in LP, we'd sit on the back porch which overlooks the alley. We would watch the rats run about the alley nearly constantly from sundown till we went in for the night. It was a bit creepy. But as you say, the city warns us. In fact they overwarn us, because I've never seen a rat in the city that is as out for blood as they are made out to be on the bright orange signs.