Monday, September 2, 2013

Creature or Wild? Yeah, We Got That.

Each week, Josie does a creative writing activity in which she gives her readers two prompts, and we can choose either one to inspire a post.  This week's words are creature or wild.  I'm going to choose both of them!

I have loved writing tests ever since I took a class on it in college.  It's one of the things I really miss about teaching.  My kids don't really appreciate written tests on healthy eating, so my test writing skills have gone unused for the better part of 15 years.   Until recently.  Clark has been putting together a "personality test" and has asked us readers to help him with some scenarios.  I have been all over it.  As I go through my days, I keep thinking, "Oh, that would be a good scenario for Clark!"  I haven't passed all of my great ideas along, mostly because I don't want to seem off my rocker, but they are in my head all the same.

This weekend, a few scenarios presented themselves.

Scenario A:

Long after the kids have gone to bed, it is discovered that a bat is flying around the room where 4 of the kids are sleeping (or almost sleeping).    If you are one of the kids in the room with the bat, which of the following describes your reaction?

(I am not even close to good enough to come up with official Doctrine "answers", but I have some of my own based on actual events.) 

1.  Run screaming from the room, hysterically crying that you may have possibly been bitten and need immediate medical attention.
2.  Calmly leave the room to find an adult to handle the situation.
3.  Stay under the covers, knowing someone else will do something to get rid of the bat.
4.  The next morning, when everyone is talking about it, realize you slept through the entire thing.

Scenario A, part 2

If you are one of the adults in the house, which of the following describes your reaction?

1.  Run screaming from the house, hysterically crying that you may have possibly been bitten and need immediate medical attention.
2.  Sigh, then retrieve the butterfly net which has, in previous bat scenarios, been repurposed as the batnet.  You may get the net, but you do not make any move to enter the room where the bat is flying.
3.  Look at the net-holder, roll eyes in derision, grab the net, go in the room, catch the bat, then release it out the front door.

I was very proud of my kids.  Not one of them panicked or screamed, even though all four big kids were in the room with a bat flying and swooping at a pretty good clip around the room.

(FYI, Phoenix is the one who stayed in bed, and Giant remained asleep until after it was over.  Buttercup and Star were the ones who left the room to get us.)

I was less proud of my husband and mother-in-law.  Our answers to the above scenario?

MIL:  1*
COW: 2

Guess which one described my reaction?

Scenario B:

At a large gathering with good friends from church/school, it is discovered that a bat which has taken up residence on a tree in the front yard (assumed to be the bat which was caught and released the night before).  What is your reaction?

1.  Run screaming from the yard, hysterically crying that you may have possibly been bitten and need immediate medical attention.
2.  Pretend the bat isn't there and set your chair up under the tree, because the space under that tree is the best on the property, and you aren't going to give it up.
3.  Go investigate the bat, having a closeish look.  You want to get a good look, but from a safe distance.  You aren't crazy.
4.  Get tired of having a bat hanging around, and right about when other bats are coming out from their normal slumber, grab the bat with your bare hands, carry it away, and release it into a nearby field.

Clinging on for dear life.

Yes, is was LOW on the tree trunk.


I have to say, I was very disappointed to not have a single person run screaming.  It would have been so funny to watch.

A couple of people just set up their chairs, but did give the bat furtive looks every so often.

Most people at the party had a bit of a look at it, then paid it no mind.

No, I did not grab the bat!  While a bat doesn't scare me, I am not about to go all Turtleman on it, thank you very much.  One guest did, though, and I was thiiiiis close to seeing some people run screaming.  Lots of jumping and people yelling, "Are you crazy?!?!?" but no screaming and running.

I have no idea what your answers say about you, but I'd love to hear what they are anyway!

We think we have found where the bats got in the house and have sealed it up.  Cross your fingers we won't have any more wild creatures visiting us again any time soon.

*May be a bit of an exaggeration.  She didn't exactly run screaming from the house, but she was panicked.  Jumping around, yelling at us to get it out of the house.  I think she slept with one eye open that night, if she slept at all.

Have a lovely day!




37 comments:

  1. I am of the run screaming down the hall, into a room, and slam the door ilk. But you knew that.

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  2. When we had a bat incident (I mentioned it here: http://www.thankfulme.net/2012/10/friday-family-history-someday-well-all.html), my mom and I were firmly glued to the couch, and my dad and John chased the critter out. No bat net, though--I think a sheet was their weapon of choice.

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    1. Sheets work, too. We've only had the batnet for a few months, so blankets and other weapons of bat relocation were used.

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  3. I have experienced both of these scenarios: one in the house and one at school. I would be the one trying to save it and release it. But, that's just me. The best thing to do outside is to leave it alone. (No, do not go all Turtleman on it.) I am relieved no one hurt it. Thanks for that.
    This was a great story. I really enjoyed it. Thanks! (I am following you, now.)

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    1. Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it. No, we aren't into hurting animals around here. (Our dogs might be, but we aren't.) We've had at least 5 in our house at different times, and all have been moved to the out-of-doors.

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  4. what great scenaria!

    not just because they are exciting, and real and interesting (and real!) and...

    I like this Post because because it involves fear and (perceived*) dangers and people who are in it are members of a family. One of the effects (of this) is that there is an added dimension, one that would not exist among say, 7 strangers standing at a bus top.
    In a situation/event involving members of a family, there are totally added levels of complexity, I would suggest, for example that it the decisions made are not simply the 'responsibility' of one in relation to others, but decisions for acting in the 'emergency' also will reflect the 'expected' roles that each (member) of the family holds for the others!
    How cool is that? Well, pretty interesting.

    One of the things about the Doctrine, and we express it in the phrase, 'it is all about how we relate ourselves to the world around us', is that, once you get comfortable enough with the characteristics of the three types, every situation becomes incredibly interesting and educational! lol

    and thank you for the shout out!

    * and, if perceived it is as real as it needs to be

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    1. I have thought about how relationships within a family affects it all. It has to add/change things a bit. It is very interesting.

      You're welcome!

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  5. Oh my...why do you always have the BEST stories?

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    1. Lucky, I guess. I wouldn't mind if you got the bat to write the story every once in a while. :)

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  6. we had serious bat issues at our old house and I did a bit of research... two things helped immensely one immediate and one long term... The immediate to get them out of the room as none of us was very good with the net and we all were traumatizing the poor things...the baby ones were downright heartbreaking...Believe it or not I read this somewhere tried it and it worked... you take an old window screen and hold it over your head and gently vibrate it (shake it) and the bat is attracted to it and clings to it...then open the window and shake it out...IT WORKS! WHO KNEW?! The longterm was we installed bat boxes in the back yard...no bats after about a month or two they relocated...

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    1. ps totally understand not wanting to appear the lunatic with the Clark survey... I have held back on a few as well...

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    2. No way!! That works??? We may just have to try that next time. Although, it won't be so easy to just open a window to release it. Our old house doesn't have windows that open in most of the upstairs rooms. We'd have to carry it through the house.

      I have become very good at catching them. It only takes me a few seconds. Perhaps it was all of those tennis lessons I took as a kid. :)

      I don't think we need bat boxes. We have plenty of places around for them to live. The big barn alone would house plenty. We've been in the attic to check for them, but haven't seen any. I don't know exactly where they are living.

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  7. I would have been taking photographs of it. We haven't any bats in our house and I'm quite pleased about that as in UK it is against the law to disturb bat roosts.
    Super children, by the way.

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    1. I would have, if it weren't for my husband and mother-in-law shaking behind me. I did take photos of the last one, since it was simply a matter of taking the chair it was lounging in outside. My husband could handle that one.

      Wow. What are you supposed to do if those bats are in your attic??

      Thank you. :)

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  8. I've not had bats indoors but plenty of giant spiders and a few lizards. These I have scooped up and shown the door. I would have to think about bats a bit longer as the flying foxes here in Australia may carry the Hendra virus which is dangerous...probably evacuate the room would be best. This was a great thought provoking post.

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    1. When we lived in Bermuda, we sometimes got lizards, and one time the gigantic, flying cockroach. A flying fox sounds quite a bit more intimidating than a bat. I might have to leave the room for that one.

      Thanks! And thanks for stopping by!

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  9. I'm so gutted you keep getting to have all these close encounters with bats. The photo is awesome - they're so CUTE! But probably a good idea not to pick it up - I can't imagine they're very hygienic things.

    Probably just as well I don't have any chez moi, though, because as jabblog says, if we get them, we're stuck with them because the numbers are so low here.

    You could get bat boxes though, and develop your own colony - I bet your 'midsummer bug infestation' issues (do you have them? Everyone gets mozzies and gnats in summer, right?) would be really well controlled.

    And g'waaaaaan - let's see what 'off your rocker' looks like XD

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    1. I "GET" to have close encounters?!?! While I'm not afraid of them, I certainly don't relish them. I would love for you to get the bats instead of me. Yes, it is best not to touch them. A bite from one could make a person really, really sick.

      Hold up. Even if it is in your house, you can't do anything about it? That is crazy!!

      You do not want to see that. Well, maybe you would. But no. :)

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  10. What a truly entertaining post, Christine! Talk about an interesting real-life scenario! I had to stop and think how each of my family members would react to something like that. I smiled at your story, because so often it is the mom who is the level-headed one who saves the day... and the bat in this case! :-) I would likely be the one retrieving the net, and then handing it to Papa Bear while I barricaded myself inside the bathroom to escape a bat targeting in on my hair! :-) I am so glad you joined us for TST this week, you did a great job with this!!

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    1. Glad you liked it! The mom is certainly the level-headed one in this house. :) So funny that you would be afraid it would go for your hair. So many people are afraid of just that. Because bats like to be tangled in hair? :)

      The prompts worked well for me. Thanks for hosting!

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  11. Scenerio B
    Answer E) Stay well away from the bat, and leave as soon as possible.
    Yes, I am not a fan of rodents.

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    1. Ha! I think a few people felt the same way, but were shamed into staying by their spouses or friends.

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  12. Me? I'd be running and screaming from the house. I don't like no stinkin' bats.

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    1. There isn't much to like about a bat, I'll give you that. I'd say, "But it's so little," if I weren't so afraid of mice. :)

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  13. I would have ran screaming from there. Oh yes I would and I have too.

    Have a terrific day. ☺

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  14. Kudos to you for taking charge, honey! We mamas have to do everything, don't we? Also, I would like to add that we are Turtleman fans at my house! LIVE ACTION! Ay! Yi! Yi!

    I would be wanting to investigate and get a close-ish look. Poor bat was probably freakin out! I am guessing he was probably harmless...wishing he was back in the bat cave and all that.

    Great story!!

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    1. LIVE ACTION!!

      I have no doubt that poor bat was very unhappy with his conditions.

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  15. Nice work not confusing the bat with screams! I've rescued several--they don't freak me out. Years ago I taught in a very old high school and bats were a common thing in our classrooms. Since they don't fly but swoop, I'd wait until they got low to the ground, scoop them into a wastebasket and set them on a high ledge outside. Years later I learned at a library program that screaming really freaks them out since they navigate by sound!

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    1. Good to know! I will be sure to have tape handy from now on. Someone screams, she gets her mouth taped!

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  16. If I had a bat in my house, I know the zookeeper inside me would totally want to keep it as a pet. I have a special place in my heart for bats... no clue why. I just think they are precious! Next time Mr. Bat comes to visit you, tell him I have a bridge under which he can lodge. A creek is beneath it too, and juicy bugs everywhere! Hee hee!

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    1. I am not surprised by this at all. I will pass along the message as I'm setting him free out the front door. May even give him bus money. :)

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  17. I miss making up test too, I.T.C. I loved to use the test genators that came with the teacher book. The old generators I still have won't work on my 64 bit Windows Seven computer or I would make some for my Sunday school class, a couples class age 70 and up.

    My four-year-old granddaughter loves to tell of the time when the bird came into our house. How Mrs. Jim opened the back door and I shooed it around with a broom. Once it saw that the door was open it swooped down from eighteen foot ceiling and was free again.

    That was a bid deal for the GD. Us too because of her. Mostly it is little lizzards that come in around here.
    ..

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  18. When I was in the second grade a bat came down our chimney and into our living room. It landed on my brothers heal while he was laying in front of the fireplace. My mother did scream, "A Bat! A Bat!" And she did run out if the room. My brother jumped up and attempted to kick the bat off his heel but it had a good grip on his sock. It finally broke loose them went flying wild circles thru the living room and diningroom. My mother, safely locked herself and my brothers and baby sister in the bathroom while I stood in the l
    Hallway of the living room watching my father hobble around the room swinging at the bat with his crutch. (My father was recovering from foot surgery.).

    It was the funniest thing to watch...you would have loved it with all the screaming and running. My father was finally able to knock the bat unconscious with the upper end of his crutch, then he picked it up and tossed it outside.

    Thanks for stopping by today...it was s sweet :-)

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Thank you for taking the time to tell me what you're thinking!