Communal Living Stories - How to get rid of Resi?

(DE 1977) I found my first room in a communal flat (WG) with two classmates from our Berlin "Schule für Erwachsenenbildung e.V.", a school for mature students to get their A-levels. This school was also an alternative educational project in which adult learners and teachers agreed on the curriculum and managed the school together. This was a new challenge, but it suited the experiences and needs of adult learners.

So the three of us not only had common goals and were at a similar stage in life, but we were also ready for new shared experiences. However, our daily routine was different. My classes took place during the day, and those of my flatmates in the evening. Moreover, all three of us had to work besides school because the student grant was not enough to live on.

Communal living stories

After we had renovated the flat, we could start living together. During the week, each of us was busy studying and working, so we hardly saw each other. But on weekends, we often had a big breakfast with lots of friends and music blaring from vast loudspeakers in all the rooms. One of my flatmates was a fan of "Supertramp" and "Queen". The other one liked to listen to classical sounds. But that was no problem. We had a lot of fun and went through ups and downs together.

But Resi gave us some problems which we had to solve

Resi was a mouse. She came to me unexpectedly in the bathroom and horrified everyone. She was cute, so we gave her the nice name Resi. But it also gave us the creeps when we imagined Resi running over our bare legs while we sat helplessly on the toilet. So we didn't dare go into the bathroom to use the toilet.

Our house mouse

We decided, for now, to walk 500 metres in the middle of winter through the highly snow-covered streets to the nearest public toilet. But, of course, that was only a solution for the moment. In the long run, we had to tackle the problem more fundamentally.

A friend advised us to blow up baker's bags and make them burst, causing a proper bang. Mice are very sensitive, our friend claimed. They probably would get a heart attack from it. We thought this was too cruel and decided we couldn't go for the malicious murder of our Resi.

Finally, luck was on our side.

A friend asked us to look after her cat for a few days. Of course, we immediately agreed because we know cats hunt mice, which is a natural process, not murder, for despicable reasons!

But this cat was very neurotic and shy. It disappeared as soon as it arrived and was not found until her owner picked her up again after five days. She was somewhat skinny as she had hardly touched the food and water offered to her. However, our hope that she would chase our mouse, Resi, was not fulfilled as we hoped. The cat did not hunt but chased Resi away solely by her cat smell, which, unbeknown to us, seemed to have spread through the flat. Our Resi was not seen again.

Of course, one might speculate whether the mouse had become the cat's victim in a dark corner at night in an unnoticed moment. But we much preferred the idea that Resi had simply moved out. Of course, we were relieved, but somehow it was also a pity. Yet, another communal living story to remember.

(LL)