Robert Fulgham and the packrats

One of my "referrals" tapped into a old post about Robert Fulgham. That's a great feature of blogging...I have collected so much stuff that I don't know myself how much is there or how best to access it. Perhaps the next generation will be better organized.

Anyway, Fulgham is still at war -- no, that's too savage a word, tug-o-war, maybe -- with packrats.

Packrat update.

Those who read this journal know that there's been an ongoing war between me and these single-minded creatures that seem determined to build nests in the walls of my house. A live trap baited with peanut butter caught one. But word got around. Then some oversized rat traps baited with bacon got a couple more. But word got around, and the rats even ran off with three of my traps. And they started building a nest under the hood of my car.

In desperation, before I bought a 12 gauge shotgun and started blowing packrats out of the walls, I called for professional help. Jay, from Spanish Valley Pest Control, came up from town with some vicious-looking black stealth devices that he baited with . . . prunes.

Prunes. Packrats are mad about prunes. Who knew?

I won't go into the gory details, but I did carry off a bucket of corpses. The bobcats and coyotes will get a free buffet. Word will get around.And for a week now the traps have been empty and the walls silent at night.

Prunes.

His prairie dog saga was documented in October.

But here is a man who can't hurt a fly without remorse.

There are not enough Robert Fulghams in the world. If I may be allowed to quote myself:

It would seem that Robert Fulgham is about to join that elite club of reclusive creative people whose egos are healthy enough that public scrutiny is not on their need list. I find that to be a definite plus in my book. A few names come to mind: Harper Lee and Kurt Vonnegut are private people. The late Johnny Carson was a sterling example of how to live life to the fullest and go out at the top of your game. I heard on the radio today [May 27, 2005] that Eddie Albert died at the age of ninety-nine. There could be a fairly long list of accomplished people who value privacy over ego-stroking. If that is what he wants to do, I say good on Robert Fulgham for joining them.