Gecko Talk!

As I am sitting here listening to the thunder off in the distance, by chance I hear another sound.  A different noise..a little high-pitched chirp.  Short and oft repeated, I know immediately what is making the sound...geckos!  There are geckos in my living room!  Most folks would immediately call for the exterminator but personally, I have no problem with the little guys slipping around behind the pictures on the walls and books on the shelves.  They are exterminators.  Here on the Bayou, there is a never-ending barrage of bugs.  I tell everyone, "If you do not like critters, don't live on a Bayou."  Some I do not mind...they mind their business and I mind mine..we get along fine.  A few, I can do without and that is where the geckos come in handy.  Roaches,  a few of the spiders, termites, mosquitoes, gnats and ants could all be eradicated from the hillside and you would not hear one whimper from me!  And while I am not so keen on having random critters scoot about inside my house, the geckos at least do a good job of eliminating any of the unwanted bugs.

A gecko like the ones in my living room tonight!

When I heard the first gecko call this evening, I thought of my dear sister.  Had she been here, she would have not stepped foot in that living room.  Unless things have changed drastically in the last few years, she is not one that likes these little reptiles.  Oh..they are ok as long as they keep their distance, of say, thirty feet or so...and are outside!  This all started as far back as we were kids.  Her siblings..me included..used to torment her by chasing her with the poor things.  The lizards..mostly green anoles..would be dangled by their tails as we taunted her.  Looking back on this, we were pretty mean!  Still it was great fun..for us..not her!  There was also the time (Sis..please do not be angry with the telling of this story!) when I was at her house years ago.  We were out clearing an area for a flower garden when all of a sudden she let out a yell!  "Something is stinging me!  I think I have a wasp in my pants!"  She had ahold to something in the lower part of her pants..just below the knee.  "Get it out!"  I reached over to squish the poor bee that by this time was probably already half dead anyway.  When I grabbed onto the britches, I knew that this was no bee.  Something else was up that pants leg!  I carefully twisted the fabric around only to spy the tail of a lizard swishing back and forth.  "Ummm..Sis..I think perhaps this....is...a....ummmm...liz........! I never got to even finish the word!  How she managed to do it, I will never know!  Without my ever letting go of the pants leg and lizard, she was out of those britches and into the house.  I was in a fit of giggles as I could hear her squeals coming from inside the house!  Oh..the things sisters do!  I was tempted to bring her "friend" into the house but decided I liked my health a lot better than the few minutes of tormenting I was to give her.  Poor Sis!  It took quite some time to calm her enough to come back in the garden!  If I remember rightly, she wore bands around her pants legs for the rest of that day!

The geckos are everywhere!  This one was on the window screen!

Recalling that story was enough to bring a smile to my face tonight as I sat trying to spy the ghost-like figures of the geckos as they scooted around on the wall.  I am supposing that before she comes to visit the Little Bayou House again, I will have to catch all of the geckos and return them to the outside.  I would not want her to be squeamish about sitting in my living room!  Although...if they kept their mouths shut, she might not even know they were peering out from behind the mirror at her!