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Originally Posted by werdnal  My son and hubby collected an ice cream tub full of conkers this year, and put the open tub tin in the garage. Went back to get some out to play with, and it was empty. Haven't yet discovered the hoard, but guess it must be woodmice too! |
27 years ago I was one of the 'hidden homeless' and spent 2 years living rough in a tent in some woods. Every day I would cycle to the nearest town, 2 miles away to buy fresh supplies.
Not far from my tent was a 'Conker Tree' but with no children living near they all 'went to waste' (not really coz something would have eaten them)
One year turned out to be a bumper year, so I collected a carrier bag full and planned to dump it outside the middle school next time I went to town.
That night, asleep in my tent, I heard some rustling only one foot away from my head (but outside the tent) but it was too much trouble to get out of my sleeping bag to investigate, but I assumed it was a mouse eating left over food, so soon went back to sleep.
In the morning there were only 3 conkers left in the bag - i discovered the other 50 - 60 had been stashed one by one into the entrance of a disused rabbit burrow about 6 metres away. I caught the culprit in the act - a cute little wood mouse who didn't take the slightest notice of me.
With 2 conkers left, I laid down with my face just inches from them and the mouse returned from his store room and collected the conkers as if I was invisible. He/she was on a mission ! I never saw the mouse again as the gamekeeper would pick me up at 8am every morning to 'do the rounds'.
At other times, I'd return to the tent only to see adders basking in the sun 2ft from it, all my bread been eaten one day presumably by a fox or a walkers dog, a Barn Owl would regularly perch or even roost in a tree 40 metres away, I could hear the nightjars churring 300 metres away and a diary entry for that 'Good Friday' (Easter) reads, "Woken up at 5am by cuckoo calling 20ft above my head. (I had my camouflaged tent hidden under a Holm Oak and Scots Pine)
I even discovered that male glow worms glow too ! It was pitch black in my tent when my eyes caught a very faint glow next to my face. I turned on my torch to discover it was a small beetle. In the morning I took it in a film canister to the library and ID'd it.
It was a nice experience, but boy was it cold !
Neil.
Mice in my garage 
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