Rat Underfoot

Here in PNG, there is hardly a boring moment. Always something that
needs done, always something to see, and always beautiful scenery that
deserves looking at. Add to that excitement that happens around you
from stories such as rat underfoot:

In the house here in Mambis we have four snakes. One a green tree
python! The largest snake is about 3 meters in length, or about 9
feet. He's about as big around as a baseball... maybe a little bit
smaller. Lately the kids here have caught a lot of rats in their live
trap cages to feed the snake. Anton encourages this as then he doesn't
have to do worry about feeding him. Lately it seems that the snake has
eaten quite a few rats and had some projectile releases to vent his full
stomach. In the past two days, there have been three rats in the cage,
two have been eaten and one, the smart one, is keeping his distance from
the snake.

After we got back from Church today, I went into the office to check
email, Laura and Nathan started lunch, and Anton was checking to see if
the rat had been eaten since this morning. Upon looking into the cage,
and not seeing the rat, he reached for a long poker and opened the cage
in order to stir up the newspaper that the rats hide under. One poke...
nothing, two pokes, nothing, three-- out comes the rat directly at him.
Anton dances an Irish jig as the rat makes a mad dash into the kitchen
and jumps onto the back of Laura's leg causing a vocal emission from her
lips. The rat then decides he doesn't want to be there and takes off
again continuing through the kitchen, past the table, around the fridge,
across the hallway toward the office. Having heard the commotion from
the next room, I turned from the computer and saw a gray streak coming
into the room at high speed. Without hesitation, down comes one of my
clod hopper sandled feet onto the hindquarters of the rat as Anton comes
tearing around the corner in hot pursuit, poking stick still in hand.
He jumps onto my foot therefore ending the rats ideas of escape and
leaving a colored smear in it's place. Back to the cage the rat goes, a
little slower, perhaps a little wiser, and possibly still faster than
the snake who is curled up on the top ledge oblivious to the chaos that
just ensued.

As of this moment, the rat is safely hiding in an upper corner of the
cage, and the snake is happily exploring the bottom. Ahh, the fun
Sunday afternoon activities...