There's a Bat in My Bedroom!

Early this morning, Reggie, my cat, catapulted himself onto my bed and tumbled over me.

My eyes flew open from the rude awakening. Uh-oh. Something was flying around my bedroom.

"What in the world!" My heart began to race.

I thought it was a bird, but there wasn't the sound of flapping wings that you hear when one is trying to get out of a room. All I heard and felt were the soft landings of the cat bouncing up and down on the bed. 

"A bat!" I threw the bedspread over my head.

The bat perched on top of my bedroom curtain.
The pointed thing is the tip of a wing. To the left, you see his claws.

I hoped the uninvited fellow would go away if I hid under the blanket, but he didn't. My rapid breathing felt like it was keeping pace with my pounding heart rate. I'd never been up-close and personal with a bat before.

Reggie didn't give a hoot that I was terrified. He just continued jumping, trying to paw the beast.

With my nerves all in a tizzy, I threw off the covers, ducked my head and dashed out of the room. Looking over my shoulder, I saw the bat still whirling around the bedroom.

What a dilemma. I didn't know what to do. In my frantic state of mind, I decided to "get out of Dodge." Never in human history has there ever been a woman who threw on clothes, put on makeup, and ran out the door in no time flat.

Poor Reggie never even got a cuddle good-bye.

In the end, the landlord's wife took care of business. She went to my apartment and captured the creepy critter with her hat, of all things. She released him out the bedroom window, and he flew away.

I just hope there aren't anymore bats under my bed.

Another view from a distance.

Wintertime Portals in Maine

"You never know what goes on behind closed doors." What a cliché, but oh, so true.

I’m a southerner, so naturally I always envisioned people up north snuggling with their families on the other side of those doors. Cozy fires warmed their homes while mugs of hot chocolate warmed their insides on cold winter days.

After I moved to Maine, I found northerners do so much more than my romanticized notions. Many Mainers cross-country ski, snowshoe and even ice fish in extreme weather. I have yet to experience any of these activities, but put a camera in my hand, and I’m out the door in a nanosecond.

During the month of January, I ventured outside several days to take pictures of snow-covered doorways. It just seemed like a cool thing to do. Many times, I just lowered the car window, held up my camera, and focused on a door in my viewfinder.

So, without further ado, here are some wintertime portals that caught my eye. 

Red door in Hallowell, Maine

Christmas wreaths hang on the front doors
of a typical New England church.

Simply rustic

The shadow of the tree draws the eye to this door.

Some entryways need a little work. Yet, with all the brokenness on the outside, 
a family has most likely made a home on the inside. 

Side entrance to a church in Old Orchard Beach, Maine

My town's only firehouse

Farm animals find shelter on the other side of this barn door.