# The Horror In The Basement **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 1, 2008, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655 "2008-05-01T19:27:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/1 "2008-05-01T19:27:47Z")
“What the _hell_ is that moron dog barking at now?”, I thought. It’s not at all uncommon for him to start yapping at someone walking up to the side of the house next door, of if the doorbell rings, but this was just plain barking at nothing. He’d pace around the hallway and living room, let out the occasional low growl, and every now and then let loose with a barking fit. Finally I chased him from the living room as my wife and I settled in to watch a little TV. “Ka-clannnng!”, came from the floor. Which was odd, since random metal-falling-on-metal noises don’t generally come up from the basement, but there it was. Then I put two and two (or barking and clanging) together and figured it out – something, or someone, was in our basement. “Someone’s in the basement!”, said my wife, “Go get your gun and check it out!” I don’t own a gun, but what the hell…this house is nearly 150 years old, and you can look down from the living room and see the basement through the spaces in the floor – sound travels very well between the two rooms. If it _is_ someone, and they think I’m-a heading down there with a gun, maybe they’ll make themselves scarce. I go down there and find no people, but after a bit a searching I come face-to-face with [the culprit](http://i.imgur.com/O8RDaGk.jpg). (Hey, good timing for me to have to run to a meeting. Coming soon, _THitB Part 2: The Unimaginably Violent Encounter!_) ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/2 "2008-05-01T19:32:09Z")
Did you scream like a little girl when you saw that? (not that I did when I clicked on the link) ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/3 "2008-05-01T19:36:39Z")
Ah! Careful now. Possums are no one’s friend. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/4 "2008-05-01T19:37:24Z")
ahhhhhh it’s a cutie. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/5 "2008-05-01T19:38:03Z")
Cutie? You are one sick puppy. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/6 "2008-05-01T19:42:50Z")
That one’s a horrible actor. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/7 "2008-05-01T19:45:36Z")
Oh, the precious thing! No, I do know better, really…but it _looks_ like a precious thing in that picture. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/8 "2008-05-01T19:51:08Z")
[QUOTE=Zebra] Cutie? You are one sick puppy. [/QUOTE] Well, they’ve got a lot of teeth, but one should have a bit of pity for the Ugliest Creature G-d Ever Made. 🙂 He’s just trying to make a living. The hair is sparse, and there’s that big ol’ rat naked, greasy looking tail. ---
**Author:** ![Litoris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9f8e36/32.png) [@Litoris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Litoris)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/9 "2008-05-01T19:51:34Z")
Kill It Kill It Kill It!! ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/10 "2008-05-01T19:54:11Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant] The hair is sparse, and there’s that big ol’ rat naked, greasy looking tail. [/QUOTE] According to my mom, they are quite greasy indeed. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/11 "2008-05-01T19:58:18Z")
**Hal** , I hope you don’t mind if I use that pic as my wallpaper. I get a kick out of that little animal. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/12 "2008-05-01T20:02:11Z")
How’d it get in there? ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/13 "2008-05-01T20:02:22Z")
Coincidentally, one of my dogs killed a possum this morning and left it in the back yard. Not nearly as cute as your little guy, though. StG ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/14 "2008-05-01T20:32:23Z")
Aww, don’t kill it! Especially not on May Day. Capture it & take it outside somewhere. After that, it won’t ever want to come back anyway. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/15 "2008-05-01T20:32:40Z")
:eek: A demon dog!!! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/16 "2008-05-01T20:33:38Z")
I call the big one ‘bitey’. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/17 "2008-05-01T20:51:29Z")
My money is on the baby possum. As \*\*Hal \*\* has not reported back yet, I will send my condolences to his widow and daughter. I caught a possum last year while trying to trap groundhogs. They make some nasty noises but were not to hard to handle. Bait a live animal trap with some older fruit and the little critter will not be able to resist. I had a small one like that run into my apartment (a long time ago now). The two cats and my trusty water gun chased it out. Jim ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/18 "2008-05-01T20:53:08Z")
[Obligatory Teen Girl Squad link](http://www.homestarrunner.com/tgs3.html) For those with Flash blocked (like me): > [@](#): > > WHAT’S HER FACE: I’m walking home from the thrift store. > > {A wave of possums approaches.} > > NARRATOR STRONG BAD: {the word scrolls across the frame as he says it} possums… > [@](#): > > {What’s Her Face enters from the left with a possum. Her clothes are torn and she is bleeding in various places.} > > CHEERLEADER: What’s your problem? > > WHAT’S HER FACE: {happily} I met a possum. > > SO AND SO: Good for you. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/19 "2008-05-01T20:54:05Z")
That’s a baby, watch for a few more and one big nasty momma possum to be around too. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2008, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655/20 "2008-05-01T20:54:31Z")
[QUOTE=What Exit?] As \*\*Hal \*\* has not reported back yet, I will send my condolences to his widow and daughter. [/QUOTE] Now I have visions of the tiny marsupial sitting quietly on the plumbing in the dark basement and belching. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-horror-in-the-basement/447655.md?page=2)