I SMELL A ?MOUSE?

 Our version of the English language is full of idioms.  We love them whether you realize it or not.  An idiom is a linguistic expression peculiar to a certain language, country, ethnicity or profession.  The ones I'm interested this week are the ones about mice or their large relatives.  

"As quiet as a mouse" is a common idiom.  For sure, they are quiet.  Their instinct is to freeze when danger approaches.  "As poor as a church mouse" is another common idiom.  A mouse, if one wandered into a church, would find little to eat and would surely be poor.  "Are you a man or a mouse?" is often heard.  Is a mouse afraid of everything?  "They played a game of cat and mouse " has been used many times to describe hide and seek between opponents.  "If you build a better mousetrap, ..." is the challenge to all inventors.  

I find that a mouse is only different than a rat in size.  Biologists cannot describe the difference.  Mice are a species of rodent that only gets so large (small, that is).  Rats start as small but grow to a larger size.  Many animals, birds and reptiles hunt them for food.  Despite this, they reproduce at such a fast pace that their population gets out of hand, at times.  

"Pack rat", "frat rat", "gym rat", "lab rat", "dirty rat", "rat fink", "rat hole", "the rat race" and "I smell a rat."  Rats are much more common in idioms than their small relatives.  But, that doesn't mean we like them better.  You'll never hear someone say, "He moused on his friend."  'Mickey Rat' would never have been popular.  

Mice are cute.; rats are not.   No one likes a rat.   Bigger is not better.  

Protect small people.  Love small people.   They are our future.