Cautionary Tale

[poliphilo]

Matthew told us this story yesterday to soften us up.

There was once a man who lived alone in a bender in the woods. He was a bit of a recluse so he was happy for the rats to move in with him and keep him company. But the rats pissed on his food and made him ill. He got sicker and sicker- and took to his bed- and the sicker he got the friendlier the rats became- which pleased him because he didn't have any other visitors- till at last they were running all round him and over him and he was thinking "these are the only friends I have in the world". Then one of them bit him and he realised they were thinking of him as a meal.   At this- with an extraordinary effort- he rose from  his bed, dragged himself to hospital, got cured- and returned home with the biggest tub of rat poison money could buy.

But we're not living in a bender and we've got stout doors and shutters and- oh, really....

Comments

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

Well, right. But you know, passing the poison on down the food chain. I guess sometimes it is the only way.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Well, I'm conflicted.

And outvoted.

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

oh, I understand. Just my .02

[cmcmck.livejournal.com]

Rats certainly do carry Weil's Disease (leptospirosis) and can pass it to humans and it can be fatal, but that does sound like a countryman's tall tale!

[cmcmck.livejournal.com]

Well, rats and ships!

The late Cyril Tawney, who was a submariner, wrote a song entitled 'Stanley the Rat' which isn't on you tube unfortunately. :o)

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Yeah...

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

What's a bender?

[cmcmck.livejournal.com]

A temporary shelter made from bent branches and covered with bracken and/or a tarp. It's a Romani term originally.

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

Thanks.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Here's what wikipedia has to say-

A bender tent is a simple shelter. A bender is made using flexible branches or withies, such as those of hazel or willow. These are lodged in the ground, then bent and woven together to form a strong dome-shape. The dome is then covered using any tarpaulin available. These tents can be heated during the winter using a woodburning stove, and they are easily capable of withstanding very strong winds so long as the covers are well weighed down.

The origin of the bender cannot be ascribed to any particular ethnic group. The mat tents used by Tuareg nomads are very similar to them, and like structures are commonplace throughout sub-saharan Africa. They were used by Romanies in Europe until very recently, and in the UK were revived for a while by the alternative society people known as New Age Travellers.

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I googled bender and probably didn't go far down enough in the search results.