Rats, Desperation, Dawgs, and Dog Tired

Man have I been busy. There have been a LOT of subjects for me to write about, so I'll try to get a few into one entry here. I'll go in order with the title:

• Rats. I have lived in my house since 1995 and have never had a rat until recently. I started seeing him a couple of weeks before Christmas. I have been trying to catch and/or terminate the rodent ever since. I immediately waged was on two fronts: "Bait and destroy" and "Ambush the Path". "Bait and Destroy" is simply a large traditional spring trigger rat trap baited with peanut butter placed where the rat would go but my kids and dog would not. It didn't work well for every morning the trap was sprung and the peanut butter licked clean. I think maybe my dog was going where it shouldn't. "Ambush the Path" is  a couple of those HUGE sticky mats that you put on the floor and when the rat steps on them they are stuck. I placed them behind furniture and in a storage closet by the hot water heater where I had seen some rat turds. They sat there for weeks before I caught anything and when I finally did I walked in to find our dog, a Shih Tzu, with all four feet stuck laying on her side whimpering. It was not easy removing the trap from the dog. Finally this week I was able to pinpoint the location of the beast's entry into the house. I then took the Spring trap, baited it and closed the door to the kitchen area just enough for the rat to get through. On the kitchen side of the door I placed the baited trap so that the little monster had to step on the trap to gain entry. The next morning I had success. It was a combination of "Bait and Ambush" that did the trick. It took me over a month to out smart a rat. The trap put the vermin out of my misery and I felt like the great white hunter. In case you're wondering, I am NOT talking about mice. I am talking about a 12-14 inch long RATS, tail and all. If they were any bigger I would be catching Possums.  The next day however my wife discovered that the rat had an older brother. This morning I slayed him as well. It was not a possum but it is getting close. We will see what happens tonight for I am now a rat killing machine.
• Desperation. In my 43 years, I don't ever remember devastation like we are seeing in Haiti. My heart breaks for these people. There is pain and anguish on so many faces. There are so many orphans. There so much chaos that even the billions of dollars of aid cannot be distributed fast enough. God please give them strength.
• Dawgs. We got a new Defensive Coordinator and a Defensive Backs coach. It will change UGA to a 3-4 defense as opposed to a 4-3. Very physical and it will bring the heat. I am happy with both hires and I can't wait for Labor Day Weekend. Go Dawgs!
• Dog Tired. I have been getting up at 4:45 every morning to go to the gym and I have been working HARD!. In addition, much of my spare time has been spent volunteering at the church. With so much activity, my body is slow to adjust to the change. God has given me the strength to do it all so far. If it was all up to me it wouldn't be happening.

In closing, I have been busy and now you know why. To all you Dawg fans that might read my BLOG, I want to make a recommendation for some good reading. This comes from a writer that blows away everything we get from the sports columnists at AJC(Atlanta journal Constitution). To make it sweeter, it is written by a lady that knows more about football that most of us fellows. She is ALWAYS on top of the UGA football scene. I don't know how she does it. Here is her blog: theladysportswriter

That's all Folks - God bless