This is what happened to me today.
Maybe you should sit down. I certainly am.
I walked into my classroom and did my normal just walked into my classroom routine.
My normal just walked into my classroom routine goes like this:
I turn on all the lamps (I have three), the Scentsy warmer (which is probably illegal so lets all just keep that to ourselves), the little tabletop fountain that I have (I’ve been told it creates a calming effect, but I’ve had it for so long that it must not be working anymore because my kids continue to have an abundance of energy from year to year), turn on the heater (or the air conditioner in summer — or nothing at all if the weather is just perfect and my classroom doesn’t feel like a tomb or an oven), and I put my iPod on the docking station and choose the playlist “George Winston” (unless it’s Fall and then I choose “Harvest Time” or unless it’s the three weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas break and then I play the “Charlie Brown Christmas” playlist).
It’s a pretty extensive just walked into my classroom routine, as you can see. But I have time for it because I get everything ready to go before I leave for the day so I can be all kinds of leisurely when I get to school in the morning. And, by leisurely, I mean I’m very busy and doing all sorts of important things, but I’m not running around like a maniac and standing in line for the copier or fighting with the copier or trying to find out where I put that tub of math manipulatives, although all of that did happen to me today, just not in the morning.
I’m not one for running around. Who wants to run? It’s really hard to run when you want to drink your coffee and have a chit chat with your teammate. Trust me. I know.
So this morning, I walked into my classroom and the only thing I really got to do was turn on the heater because, don’t ya know, it was only 56 degrees in my classroom which is considered a below freezing temperature in Southern California, so I was cold! Freezing cold!
Next, I walked over to the corner of my classroom where I have a nice little calming situation (or an attempt at creating calm) going on which includes a lamp, the tabletop fountain, and the Scentsy warmer sitting on a counter. And as I reached to turn on the lamp, I heard something.
And it sounded a little like high pitched crying.
Or like the musical note EEEEEEEEEE. Whatever that sounds like. I was not a music major, nor am I a musical person, so I don’t know if EEEEEEEE sounds like the long e sound or not, but there you go.
So I jumped back about ten feet, and maybe a chair fell over in the process, and maybe my heart speeded up, and maybe I started to sweat.
I don’t know. Because then I talked myself out of the feeling.
Because what I haven’t told you is this:
We have mice.
I KNOW!
And it is a huge problem. And it’s sort of all of a sudden. When our school opened fifteen years ago, it was a huge problem because they were building new houses nearby and blah blah blah, but I’m telling you, it’s a problem again. It’s a problem NOW.
And yesterday, after the kids went home, a Pest Control man came to my classroom during my team meeting to set out glue traps.
YES.
Exactly.
Yep.
And he said that our custodian would be told where they were so that he could check them in the morning.
And all I have to say about that is I guess I’m the custodian because guess who checked the glue trap to make sure her mind wasn’t playing tricks on her because she overreacts and tends to hear things that she thinks is high pitched crying, but is actually the lamp switch being turned on, or the refrigerator humming, or a pencil falling off a bookshelf?
Yes, me.
I checked the glue trap.
And I heard correctly. Maybe for the first time ever.
And a tiny little mouse was stuck on the glue trap and wriggling around and crying.
And it was HORRIBLE, PEOPLE!
I almost started crying (or maybe I actually did cry and maybe I feel like crying right now), and I have complete and total mixed emotions because I don’t want mice in my classroom, OBVIOUSLY, and I definitely don’t want all of their droppings, either, but I really don’t want them to suffer!
And this little mouse was suffering!
I had to call our custodian (who was really upset on my behalf, and he wanted to know why he wasn’t told that a company had set glue traps in my room) and he came to the rescue.
But you don’t want to know what he did to end the mouse’s suffering.
And I’m not telling.
Not to mention, I don’t know if he even really did it because I left my classroom, and made a big ole production out of how upset I was by jumping up and down a little, and holding my head in my hands, and half fake/half real crying in front of some kids who happened to be nearby.
When I told my aide what had happened, she said GOOD! CATCH THEM ALL! THEY ARE AWFUL! And when I told our night custodian about it, he said he already knew and he said, THEY’RE VILE LITTLE CREATURES! WE MUST GET THEM ALL!
WHAT?
What in the world? In the words of Taylor Swift, Why You Gotta Be So Ruuuuuuuuude?????
How am I alone in this?
I am sort of reminded about the time We Had Birds. If you haven’t read about that time, you should. It’s {HERE}.
🙁
I had mixed emotions then, too.
I’m not saying I want a pet mouse. But I’m also saying that they’re one of God’s creatures.
Like I said.
Mixed emotions.
Where do you stand????????
I want them dead. But I don't want to SEE it…
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That is awful, I can't stand to see any creature suffer. I'm so sorry you had to see it.
Oh my gosh! That happened in my classroom, too, and it was terrible! I never put another sticky trap out. It's better to just put a regular mouse trap out and then they don't suffer. I know, I know… No mouse traps with kiddos around. I just put it over behind some stuff in the corner and told them to stay away
I had a family of them in the heater in my room and they died, and smelled bad. So my hound dog nose sniffed them out and they janitor came to clean them out, right at the children started to file in the classroom. Talk about a hands on science lesson. The poor janitor took a week to recover from all the questions and screaming.
I've had one in my classroom before also! Our school had a mice problem! 🙁
They are adorable. Out in a field. But NOT IN MY CLASSROOM!!!
I used to keep a bunch of extra snow pants in an empty cubby in my kindergarten room. I didn't realize that I also had an unopened bag of popcorn under the snow pants. When I went to organize my room one August, I found a whole nest of mice that had eaten through the bag of popcorn, and had a nice cozy nest in the snow pants. I, of course, screamed and jumped on a table. The custodian came in, flicked the snow pants out of the cubby, and proceeded to stomp on the mice. I am still traumatized…
I'm with you on the mixed emotions! I had mouse droppings all over my room, even in the paper tray of my printer! The pest people put out glue traps and put one in my printer tray. The next day there was no mouse but there was fur and blood on the paper and on the glue trap. �� It was gross. . . and sad.
We had mice bad one year at my house (gasp!) and bought electric Victor mouse traps. You put peanut butter in the trap and turn the switch on. It blink green. If it gets a mouse (yes electrocutes it) then the light blinks red to let you know there is one to get out. No fuss, no mess, no squeaking, suffering mouse, just dump in the trash (or your neighbor's trash!).
Bless you! I am with you… I caught a shrew in my classroom one year and decided it would be a pet until I heard their bite was venomous. I have no words. No words of wisdom at all.
I had that happen in my room but with one getting half on the glue strip and half off the glue strip and it was trying to move around. AWFUL! However, I would rather have glue strips and not the awful smell of one of them getting stuck under a cabinet and stinking up the room so bad that we cleaned out the entire area and still could not find the smell. (until we moved the cabinet and found it.) I think that is the worst.
We have mice, too. Once in my closet I saw a litter of babies—like 4 or five on the glue trap. I jumped and ran to get the custodian and he took care of it. I don't like to see them suffering but I also know they have damaged more of my things than I can count. I agree, don't let me see it and I am okay with removal.
I want them trapped humanely and released somewhere outside of the building! I certainly would not want my little ones to walk into the classroom and hear the terrible crying from the sturggling mouse.
We dealt with this situation in our 60+ year old home shortly after the flooding in SC back in October. Unfortunately our cat was the trap (not very humane), the momma mouse was killed but I was able to locate the nest and safely remove the young ones to some woods. They were big enough to leave the nest I hope.
As I was driving up to my sister's house, she came screaming out, "There's a mouse in a trap! You have to come get it!! (I am not much braver, but there was no one else.) I went into her kitchen to hear a rattling from somewhere. Long story shorter…a teeny tiny mouse was caught in the "better" mousetrap, by his teeny tiny foot! Banging around in the sink! I bravely put on kitchen mitts, picked it up (cringing) and asked my sister what did she want to do with it, I could not smash his head!! She couldn't either, so we took it to a burn pile in the back, gave it, its freedom, and warned him don't come limping back…we would not be so kind next time!!
A mouse ran into my classroom in the middle of the day 2 years ago. The teacher across the hall had eyes as big as saucers because it had been in her room. So my kids and I spent the rest of the day wondering where he was hiding. The custodian brought a glue trap, but I brought a snap trap from home and hid it. I didn't want him to suffer – the snaps are much quicker for the sad task that it has to do. I had to take the trap back home because they are not allowed in school. He was eventually captured in a closet down the hall from my room. About 30 years ago my Dad put a glue trap on the edge of our basement foundation, on the inside. It was still there until a few months ago because I refused to take it down and possibly find a mouse skeleton. It was empty, thank goodness.
Omg you're freaking hilarious! I swore I wasn't going to look at anything school/work related, and here I am reading a teacher's blog. But you're more than a teacher blogger, you're a stand up comedienne writer! I loved it! You had me at, 'illegal scentsy warmer.' I have one too!
ps. you have to try the trio smelly wax for the warmer, from Michael's. There's a pancake, cookie, something yummy one.
Oh and…. Yes. Mixed emotions about your mouse. Good luck on Monday! 🙂
Aharwell
I don't think glue traps should be allowed. They are cruel and just the thought of a child seeing a mouse caught on one makes me cry. I am so sorry you had to see that too. I teach in a rural school so we get mice. One year one waddled across my room and one little girl calmly pointed him out. Most of my class were so upset at that thought of it being killed so I promised to get one of those live traps. I swear I caught the same mouse four times! And taking it outside to let it go kind of creeped me out. I finally had to break down and tell the custodian. He put out a little enclosed container with poison. I didn't have the heart to tell the class though.
I stand right with you! I don't think I can sleep tonight! Think how his momma feels!!!!!!!!! ARGGGHHHHHH!
We had a huge mice infestation at our school a few years ago. Our mice were super-human or something. They would some how get seeds, or food out of our emergency packs hanging about 3 feet off the ground! It was crazy. I hated finding the glue traps with them attached to them. So gross!!
Love your stories…. 🙂
right there with you!! not a fan of the mice but HATE glue traps!! Im sorry you had to see and hear that ..
Karen
I know what you mean about mixed feelings. We had mice when we first moved into our house. We didn't want to kill them, but we didn't want them in the house either. My son bought some humane traps (you put some food in it and a mouse can get in, but it can't get out again) and we put them out and caught them, then we took them to some nearby hills, where little critters abound, and let them go.
We had pet mice when I was a kid. 2 of them. And then we "adopted" a third (Fred) from a friend who had to give hers up. Fred escaped from his cage on the first night we had him. And we could hear him crawling around at night. Of course, my mom was so freaked out… But we wouldn't let my dad set traps because he was our pet! After about a week, my mom caught him one night and we woke to find him back in his cage. The sad part was, Fred the party animal had invited a bunch of his wild friends into our house and my dad had to set traps for real. Talk about mixed emotions! Gah! Having a friend sleep over and hearing a trap snap!? While Fred is in his cage right beside us!? It traumatized us. Sorry you had such a terrible start to your day 🙁
In my classroom it was cockroaches. Not just any cockroaches….THE MOTHER OF ALL COCKROACHES. I say death to all cockroaches!!!!!!!!!
We had a mouse recently in my classroom. He ran back and forth around the perimeter…so did my kids. I sat on a table and screamed. It went from the kids being afraid of Rabies to wanting to keep it as a pet. Our principal caught it in a bucket and put it outside….so it's probably already reunited with it's family of 80000 that are running rampant around our school. My colleague had one in her desk drawer…yep.
I definitely don't want mice in my classroom or house BUT I am totally squeamish about anything seeing anything being killed (and I definitely can't kill things). I don't even like to kill bugs (but I do)- I feel like I'm taking something's life away.
Eeek! Last year I discovered that a mouse had been nibbling on a chocolate bar I had on my shelf. Can't say that I blame him. (It was only after then that I learned our 'keep food in sealed containers' rule.) Custodian put out a sticky trap. I came in the next morning to find a mouse just standing there, stuck on the trap. I swear he looked at me and just blinked. I'm pretty sure I also cried. It was a very exciting way to start the day.
We had a HUGE mice problem to this year. All of us were worried too because in Colorado there had been outbreaks of plague and hanta (spelling?) virus. Our mouse problem got so bad that they ran out of the "humane traps" which were these metal boxes they would crawl into and not be able to get out of. So in my classroom they put sticky traps and SNAP TRAPS!!!!! Which, by the way, the snap traps are a HUGE no no in schools. We never did catch the mouse in my room. I like to think that it was one that was caught in another room. However, my traps are still sitting in my classroom and I'm always terrified I will come in and there will be one in there.
How I Got My Loan From A Genuine And Reliable Loan Company (Lexieloanfinance@gmail.com)!!!
My Name is Nicole Marie, I live in USA and life is worth living comfortably for me and my family now and i really have never seen goodness shown to me this much in my life, As i am a struggling mum with two kids and i have been going through a serious problem as my husband encountered a terrible accident last two weeks, and the doctors states that he needs to undergo a delicate surgery for him to be able to walk again and i could not afford the bill for his surgery then i went to the bank for a loan and they turn me down stating that i have no credit card, from there i ran to my father and he was not able to help me, then when i was browsing through yahoo answers and i came across a God fearing man (Mr Martinez Lexie) who provides loans at an affordable interest rate and i have been hearing about so many scams on the Internet mostly Africa, but at this my desperate situation, i had no choice than to give it an attempt due to the fact that the company is from United State of America, and surprisingly it was all like a dream, i received a loan of $82,000.00 USD and i payed for my husband surgery and thank GOD today he is ok and can walk, my family is happy and i said to myself that i will shout to the world the wonders this great and God fearing Man Mr Martinez Lexie did for me and my family; so if anyone is in genuine and serious need of a loan do contact this GOD fearing man via Email: Lexieloanfinance@gmail.com or ( Lexieloancompany@yahoo.com ) or immediately reach him through text Tel: +1 (406) 946-0675 thanks