Power outage and uninvited visitors

Dude.  Why is it that when the power goes out, the dogs start howling?  And why does it always happen when you’ve just finished a scary movie.  Logic just won’t penetrate when the power comes back on and you KNOW you turned off that bathroom light.  Stupid scary movies instilling Pavlov’s instincts to ignore reason and panic.  Lucky for me, my cell phone was powered.  Forget high speed, apps, VOIP, and internet, this smart phone saves the day as a flashlight.

And by the way, I’m pretty sure there is a raccoon or a cat or something living in the walls of this house.  Do they even have raccoons in Italy?  Well, I’ve seen a cat lately, a white cat with black spots roaming around here.  We’re almost friends but she’s a little skittish.  Every other morning at about 5 or 6 am, there is a scratching, you know, like a cat makes, above my bed, in the wall, between my room and the locked room next door…or right outside my door, on the second floor.  At first I thought someone was in the house but I’ve come to my senses in my dream-induced haze and pinpointed the approximate size and nesting habits of my little friend.  I just can’t figure out how it get’s in there.  When it snowed the other night, there were no animal prints outside.  The gutters don’t….well, dismiss that thought.  Is there an architect that can share with me the structure of walls and what have you?  I know other animals get inside the walls, but on the second floor?  Birds don’t scratch.  A mouse would be too small.  Squirrels?  Ugh.

Oh and I totally saw my friend "the neighbor dog" kill one of the other neighbors chickens yesterday.  Got video of it too..., which seems sadistic, but I really thought the two dogs were playing and herding the chickens.  What does it all mean?

Maybe I’ve been alone too long and am losing it.  If you don’t hear from me soon, call the authorities.  I don’t want to be one of those people who isn’t found for days.