Dogfight in the Ceiling

Back when I first started staying the night over in the apartment in Zhuhai I was startled awake by a thunderously loud sound. It felt like the building was collapsing. But then the sound was gone. So I tried to get back to sleep. Ten minutes later it returned and I pin pointed it to something horrific going on above me. Was someone being beaten in the apartment above me? No, someone was running or being chased. There was definitely fleeing and fighting. But the fleeing was to fast for a human. Are they having dogfights in the apartment above me? But there was no growling. Then the sound was gone again. I never did get back to sleep after that.
The next day I mentioned it to another teacher who used to live in that very apartment. “Oh,” he said, “I should have told you about that. It’s a cat in the ceiling chasing the rats.” Of course! Why didn’t I think of that? Why? Why? Because that is crazy!
Over the months I have been awoken by the sounds, and I had gotten kind of used to it. Having seen the occasional rat in the hallways, it was rather comforting to know that the cats were on duty and keeping the rats at bay. But about a month ago I was once again awoken in the middle of the night but not by the usual fleeing and fighting in the ceiling. This was something rummaging around my Snicker bars. I turned on the light and slowly went over to check on them. There was no definitive proof – no open packages, no teeth marks, no rat pellets – but I put what little food I had in the kitchen into the refrigerator and went back to sleep.
The next few days would deliver proof of varmints though. Something was gnawing on my yoga mats. Rat turds started showing up with more and more frequency. I could have bought a trap or poison, but that would only mean I’d end up with a dead smelly rat in my apartment and not fix the real problem. The real problem is that now the rats were able to get into the apartment, when before they obviously could not. I suspect that the hole in my rotting door frame has gotten big enough for them to get in. But I’m not sure, there could be something else and I want someone to find it and fix it.
I moved out. For the last three weeks I have been commuting everyday across the border. Usually an hour each direction. But if lucky it can go 30 minutes, if unlucky 2 hours. And I am exhausted. When I say I moved out, I mean I moved out. I have brought nearly everything back to Macau. Because the rat situation just kept getting worse and worse. First the rat pellets were just placed one here, one there. Then it go worse. I’d find them on the counter, along the wall. Then a couple on the desk. Then one in my makeup basket. Then a couple on the bed, with pee along side. Then, the gross out point was when I found them IN the bed. So everything had to be bleached and evacuated.
The school is saying they are getting the room fixed, with real construction and everything. New ceiling and new door frame. But as of yet nothing has happened. I am getting really tired commuting. Plus, taxi fares equal one quarter of my salary. So this job really doesn’t seem worth it. Not that I was ever really doing it for the money, but this is getting ridiculous.
So, we’ll see how much longer I can stick it out. But I just don’t know…..