My Love Affair with Bats
I once rescued a bat in distress.
It happened about five years ago when I was walking my dog and stepped over
what I thought was a dark brown leaf. But then the leaf’s head moved.
It was August and very hot, and
my heart just went out to the poor thing. I phoned a local bat rescue, and
although the woman at the helm was willing to take the bat, she couldn’t come
out because she had to keep a 24/7-eye on a batch of baby bats. I managed to
move the injured bat into a shoebox and transport it about forty-five minutes
away to this woman, who lived in a house full of bats and cats. Even her
license plates on her car read BATRESQ. I learned the bat I’d rescued was
approximately two, a female Big Brown with a shoulder injury. Unfortunately,
after trying to save her for over a month, the rescue had to euthanize, as she
wouldn’t leave the stitches alone and her survival hinged upon her
rehabilitation.
Through this experience, I
learned a lot about bats and began researching them. Bats are the only mammals
with the ability to sustain flight (as their arms are really wings). Bats eat
half their body weight in insects every night (lucky for us around here, since
we’re swimming in mosquitoes). Also, it is a myth that bats readily carry
disease. Only 1/10th of 1% of bats are rabid. Essentially, these guys are great
for the environment. Bats hibernate in the winter months, and you can encourage
them to hang out at your place by building bat houses on the eaves of the house
that receive the most sun.
If you want to learn more about
bats or bat rescues, batworld.org is a great site.
I now have a plethora of bat
paraphernalia—earrings, purses, shirts, skirts, etc. It’s actually amazing just
how much bat stuff is out there.
What are your feelings about
bats?
The Meadows
Legacy of Darkness
Book One
London Clarke
Genre: Gothic suspense; supernatural thriller
Legacy of Darkness
Book One
London Clarke
Genre: Gothic suspense; supernatural thriller
Publisher: Carfax Abbey Publishing
Date of Publication: October 2018
ISBN: 9781386765233
Cover Artist: Stephen Lee Designs
Tagline: Bed, breakfast, and blood.
Book Description:
A decades-old murder. A strange, blood-thirsty cult. And a house full of spirits.
It was supposed to be a new beginning, a fresh start in the Shenandoah Valley, where Scarlett’s memories weren’t riddled with drug addiction and rehab. But after purchasing an abandoned house with a checkered past in the hopes of transforming it into a luxury bed and breakfast, strange things start to happen. Disturbing voices and noises interrupt her new life. Strangers appear to her, bearing cryptic warnings. A tunnel is discovered underneath the house—one historically used for a local cult’s rituals. After several of Scarlett’s guests are hospitalized after visiting the underground, she finds herself targeted by violent spirits.
Driven to the edge of despair, Scarlett vows to fight back—but she has no idea what she’s really battling. And her nightmare is just beginning…
The Meadows is a gripping supernatural thriller in which the monsters may be vampires, demons, or flesh and blood. It is a nightmare that will make you believe it could easily happen to you.
About the Author:
Obsessed with vampires and haunted houses from a young age, London grew up reading gothic tales featuring romantic and tragic heroes. Wuthering Heights and Dracula are her favorite novels, and although now happily married, she readily confesses that she is a recovering runaway, who once moved to England in search of a man who was the perfect amalgamation of Dracula, Hamlet, Heathcliff, and Mr. Rochester. London holds a B.A. in Music and M.F.A in Creative Writing. She’s had an eclectic array of jobs including receptionist, legal secretary, literary assistant, high school English teacher, and freelance editor.
London lives in a Washington, DC suburb with her husband and three greyhounds. She’s happiest when she’s writing novels, reading books, or binge watching her favorite programs like The Vampire Diaries or Being Human.
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