May 21 2009
Tree Rings
A month has passed and I am happy to report that we have a solution for the rat invasion. It is outrageous to think that we needed to fly in a rodent expert all the way from Holland. He came highly recommended and I managed to convince the owners that spending $1000 on one air ticket is totally worthwhile when we are facing any future rebate at $1000 a room per night.
Hans earned our respect from the moment he entered the meeting room. Unlike most pest control officers, he was clean-shaven, well dressed and soft spoken. I was most impressed that rats had their own PowerPoint presentation. Hans quickly pointed out why our own rodent control had little success. He color-schemed the rats and highlighted their behavioral patterns. We were putting traps in the kitchen while the Asiatic black rats live in trees! South African rats are most active during the day while Indian rats come out only during the night…
We never knew we were the United Nations of Rodents headquarters!
Within one day, Hans made drastic changes to our pest control formula and the most daring move was to install metal rings on the coconut trees. We positioned the foot wide aluminum rings about 2 feet below the crown of the trees - just within sight of the juicy young coconut buds the rats love so much but just out of reach. Their claws will not be able to cling to the slippery aluminum therefore we will be able to catch them on the ground level.
By the end of the second day and Hans already on his way back to Holland, all our coconut trees proudly displayed their brand new shiny rings and we began to collect up to twenty rats in traps a night. The number peaked one day at 35 and began to dwindle to one or two a day. I guess we are finally on our way to a rodent-free island for the opening.
One last task before opening: I need to come up with a good story to explain the tree rings. Would guests really look up and notice the rings? If so, I can always blame the ubiquitous lizards.
Stumble It!
