Date: Thu, 7 May 1998 21:03:18 -0700
Reply-To: "Steven X. Schwenk" <sxs@SCHWENK-LAW.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <Vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: "Steven X. Schwenk" <sxs@SCHWENK-LAW.COM>
Subject: Mice Camping in Westfalias (an early friday poast)
Content-Type: multipart/alternative;
Bill Dummitt's discovery of that near-fatal wire short (see below)
caused by mice chewing the Fuel Injection wires must be the tenth post
I've seen about mice camping out in westfalias...often causing serious
damage. Scary. Upon reading these in the past, I would smugly lean
back in my chair content that I didn't have to worry about those measley
mice since my syncro westfalia is kept in a garage.
Ha! How wrong I was. On my ten day trip into the mountains and the
desert last december, I discovered on my second day out that there was a
stowaway aboard ... yes, a mouse...and by unfortunate coincidence, he
had a fondness for the same foods I do. All of them. This obviously
presented a problem. I could not bother with him just then, though, so
I moved the food and kept on driving...until we finally drove deep out
into the desert to a secret oasis ..... after four long hours of
rough dirt road over mountain passes and through deep snow .... when we
arreived, palms trees, pools and hot springs greeted us...as did a few
mostly naked natives basking in the warm sun. (I have taken a
death-oath not to reveal the location ... ever.) I set up in a nice
spot with an incredible view of the a barren desert valley ending on one
side with 9000' mountains rising sharply into the sky. An ancient dry
lake bed glimmered in the foreground.
The mouse and I didn't get along too well at first. I hated him, in
fact. He had this bad habit of chewing on a large stash of Ramen
noodles he had just as I was dozing off to sleep at night. Do you know
what a racket that can make out in the desert in the dead of night in a
westfalia? Not only that, but he had the complete run of the place.
There was no stopping him. I'd see him on the dash one minute, and then
along the window edge by the stove the next. Before long, he'd be down
by the propex heater somewhere munching on those damn Ramen noodles
again. Then he'd be in the cabinet under the sink looking around for
the food I moved. Quick, open the door.... gone.
I tore the van apart trying to find him...or at least his Ramen stash.
I plugged-up passage ways try to trap him in one area. I rigged traps
with bags and boxes and bait. I even stupidly laid out an elaborate food
trail leading out the open sliding door to a bigger food stash prize
hoping he would jump out to get it. All this did, though, was draw a
mangy coyote... (no relation to Ron). Nothing worked. The darn mouse
was just too smart for me.
I eventually gave in and ended up feeding him myself, daily....several
times a day, in fact, ... out of fear that he would chew through
something critical if he ran out of Ramen noodles. I wanted him fat and
lazy and napping all the time ... like i was ... well i'm not fat.
Anyway, we got along ok for the rest of trip after that. I'd see him
around ... his appearances were brief ...and he didn't crunch on his
Ramen noodle stash as much once I kept him well fed.
When I got home...I left the van doors open, removed all traces of
food...and sprayed lysol everywhere inside. He left....I've never seen
him again. Moral of the story? If you're gonna drive out into the
desert to a remote, exotic spot to camp for a bit of peace and
tranquility ... don't pack Ramen noodles. That crunching sound will
drive you crazy if you pick up a mouse along the way. Other
moral...mouse proof your van. A westy is nothing less than mouse
heaven...especially if there's food in it.
steve schwenk
90 syncro westfalia
www.Schwenk-Law.com
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