While Slashdot argues over reasons not to get Firefox 2.0, I can only say there are two reasons to get it:

• It's just like Firefox 1.5 but probably better in ways I haven't noticed yet
• In-built TEXTAREA spell check

Don't underestimate the in-built spell checker. It's the biggest change to come to the web since gMail.

The rat a few weeks ago must have been a scout. It was party time last night.

I intend to buy some rat poison tonight or tomorrow night and try to fix the problem myself, cheaper than the $150ish charged by the creepy pest controllers.

I tried to look up some details on rat poison but it all just freaks me out. Half the web is full of articles on people using rat poison to taint food.

Wikipedia doesn't help:

Rodents are difficult to kill with poisons because their feeding habits reflect their place as scavengers. They will eat a small bit of something and wait, and if they don't get sick, they continue. An effective rodenticide must be tasteless and odorless in lethal concentrations, and have a delayed effect.

Yay.

This sounds great, but I doubt it's available:

Another alternative is the use of biological, non-toxic, yet lethal baits, consisting of anhydrous powdered maize/corn cobs, containing high fractions (over 40%) of α-cellulose, which is incorporated into a solid, gastric-resistant matrix, that is dissolved in the gut. The α-cellulose anhydrous powder released in the gut of the rodent disrupts water and electrolyte balance and so kills the rodent. This material is commonly formulated with taste and flavour additives to increase its palatability, and is compressed into granulate of appropriate size (granules of bigger size for rats, smaller granules for mice). This material is completely non-toxic, leaves no harmful residues, is environmentaly friendly and accidental ingestion of it by pets or children is simply treated by giving laxatives, plenty of water and electrolytes. Dead rodents killed by this mean pose no risk of secondary poisoning.