Those that know me, even slightly, probably know that I am a firm believer in random (and deliberate) acts of kindness. I am also not into flaming, gossip, kicking or banning. Instead, I try to ignore what I consider offensive behavior if talking doesn't seem to resolve the issue. I often just leave. For a long time I actively chose to NOT be "op-ed" as a protest for all the power trips I saw happening on various channels on IRC. It was absolutely NOT a popular stance. Not only did I generally stand alone on that issue, but it confused some and offended others in the process. I have since decided that it just gave too much power to "ops" to not accept them and now, I thank people either way and don't make an issue.
I have had to revamp my thinking on a variety of issues regarding win/win situations lately. It has actually been a bit unsettling, but I generally try to look for the lessons in life all around me.
It happened one morning -- this value-changing event, even though it started off like any other morning. I was up too late the night before on the net. I sleepily snuggled with my kidlette who was playfully jumping on me to wake up "the mama." I turned on the computer as I made my way to go get "brekkie" for that 5 y/o. In my kitchen, I saw a flurry of fur race past me and I screamed. Looking back on it, and laughing now, I must have looked just like those cartoons of a woman jumping on a chair and "eeeeeeeking" because she saw a mouse. I actually thought it was a RAT!
I immediately called bobdhubby at w*rk who confirmed the MOUSE sighting. In fact, he had seen TWO that very morning for the first time! How could this have happened? This was MY space and I was not about to share it with wild critters. Bob assured me that we would take care of it when he got home, but meanwhile, we were to just make a lot of noise when we entered the room. I felt weirded out and tried to think about other things throughout the day. The analogy of flamers, hackers and other wild critters invading gentle net spaces came easily to my mind. (shows you how my mind works, eh?! *grin*)
When Bob came home, we had a family talk. While I was intent in ridding us immediately of these intruders, Bob and our son advocated for the KIND approach to mouse exorcising. Hitting me where my values reside, I went along. We found the hole where they had come in and Bob created a new mouse trap. It was really quite ingenious. He got a wide piece of PVC tubing and duct taped it to a large glass jar. He then taped the tube to where the hole was in the wall. Strong fishing line was rigged in a Rube Goldberg type fashion and tempting mouse type delights were put in the jar. As soon as a mouse came to *dinner*, the line was pulled, which set the jar on end and made it impossible for the mouse to exit. It was then a simple matter of then releasing the displaced mouse into the vacant lot across the street.
It was fun actually, watching my family take on this project with enthusiasm, creativity and kindness. The old saying "build a better mouse trap and the world would beat a path to your door" kept a chuckle in my heart in this process because IT WORKED! We caught the first mouse and the mousie uhaul moved him right to his new home -- a mouse paradise in the blackberry thicket.
The second mouse was now the target and we were soon rewarded with his/her presence. I even chuckled about the fact that we could enjoy watching nature up close without the hassle of having to clean the hamster cage. This mouse was a bit smarter though, and was fast enough to come eat the treats and race through the pipe before we could nab him. Not only that, but, we were very foolish to think there were just two mice. We found another one that had run under the cupboard that was not able to get back inside where the hole was now plugged. Our roommates, having seen a mouse themselves, started filling my head with mouse disease stories so it was time to up the ante. No more "Mr./Ms. nice guy!" Bob was now exploring other more conventional traps.
We settled on spring action traps over poison or glue paper that literally stopped them in their tracks. Apparently with that method, they sometimes are so desperate, they have been know to gnaw off their legs. This was serious now and we had a difficult time explaining it to our son.
In an effort to try to prevent such invasiveness, we searched for any ways they were getting into the house in the first place. Bob found a hole where they had dug into the dirt under the gas meter. He flooded it with water and tried to plug up the hole. Still we would find one every now and again in the trap. He then tried to fill the little square space with concrete. They made a hole before the concrete could properly set all the way. Either that, or they were CONCRETE eating hackers making it past our firewall and into our *homedrive*.
We are now at day 5 without any mouse attempts at taking over our space. (I wonder if some of the IRC channels have ever gone that long.) *grin* I don't regret the energy spent in trying the gentle, yet insistent approach first, just as I am not totally opposed to kicking and banning. I just have always believed it was a LAST resort and not the FIRST resort. I have to say that I do have a new understanding of why people react so strongly to intrusive beasties, wherever they may show themselves. I came to realize that behavior I have labeled as rash, may just be plain efficiency. Sometimes it is way more humane to deliver a quick and decisive cut than it is to deal a less violent, but painfully slower hack if the outcome is bound to be the same.
May all of our *mouse* experiences be beneficial.