SQUIRRELY SQUIRREL (revised)

"Bogart, leave my glass alone!" Dezi had just sat her glass of milk on the table when that crazy grey squirrel had scurried up the table leg and headed straight for the glass. "No, don't you..." before she could finish the sentence, Bogart had stuck his paw in the milk. She
just couldn't understand why her dad had rescued that furry creature. People don't have squirrels as a pet.
Bogart loved playing with everyone in the family, but Dezi didn't like the rough way
he played. At 8 years old Dezi didn't like being messed with.
"Mom! Bogart won't leave my glass alone, he keeps sticking his paw in my milk and licking it. Mom! Make Bogart leave me alone! " Dezi waited for her response, but her mom didn't say anything.
"Bogart, get down from there!" He began thumping his fluffy grey tail and went 'tsk, tsk, tsss, tsss', knocking the glass of milk onto the floor.
Dezi gave up and stomped to her bedroom. She had just laid out her new blue shirt to change into. Reaching for the shirt, Bogart leaped onto the bed and snatched it, then bounced out the door to the kitchen.
"Bogart give me my shirt back, right now! Moooom! Bogart took off with my shirt. Help me find it." She grabbed another shirt and pulled it over her head before she went to find it.
"Dezi, just wear something else. I don't have time for these games."
"No! Beth and I wanted to match today. Bogart where are you?"
As she walked into the kitchen, she stepped on the shirt and sled into the refriderator. "Mom, I found it. Ouch! Bogart quit throwing cans at me! Ouch! That really hurts, stop throwing things at me!!!" Dezi screamed. "Mom, make him leave me alone."
'Rrring, rrring, rring', Dezi headed toward the phone,but before she could answer it, Bogart, jumped on top of her head and sled on her face.
"Mom, HELP!" she screeled.
As her mom removed Bogart, his claws scratched her face. Then her mom shook her finger in his chubby face and scolded him. Bogart looked hurt and jumped back up into the cabinet.
'Rat-a-tat, tap, Rat-a-tat, tap, tsk, tsss,thump.' Dezi ducked just as a can of corn flew over her head.
Dezi stomped her foot and shook her fist at him. She raised her voice, "Bogart, leave me alone!" Bogart stared at Dezi for a minute and threw another can. Dezi caught the can and threw it back. Bogart jumped down and ran into the living room.
'Honk, Honk' It was the school bus, Dezi grabbed her backpack and ran for the bus.
         During homeroom at school, her and Beth were talking about her problem.
"Beth, that squirrel Dad brought home won't quit pestering me. Look what he did to my face this morning. When I go to do my homework, he takes my pencil and chews it up."
"Trying giving him one of his own." Beth suggested
"Okay, I'll try it."
So that night when Dezi sat down at the table to do her homework she put her plan into action. "Okay Bogart here is your pencil, now go away so I can do my homework." Dezi pulled out her addition paper and her pencil.
"No, don't take my pencil! Bogart, I gave you one. Now Stop That!"
Dezi dug around in her backpack until she found another pencil. Then she picked up Bogart, with him pawing and wiggling, and took him in the bathroom, as she shut the door, she heard 'crash, cladder, thump, thump.'
"Dezi, let Bogart out of the bathroom before he destroys everything."
"But Mom, he won't let me do my homework. Fine, I'll lock myself in the bathroom."
The next night she left her backpack on the table, hoping it would confuse Bogart. Sitting down on the couch she began to do her Math, she had finished problem ten, when Bogart jumped on her lap.
"Hey, give me my pencil back." Smiling, Dezi let him take her pencil. He was jumping up and down on the couch, and didn't notice that she had another pencil. Once he noticed the pencil in her hand, he leapt onto her arm, grabbed the pencil and ran.
"Bogart give it back, that was my last pencil." Bogart smiled this time, he had finally gotten a rise out of her. She chased him around the house for an hour, before she gave up and found another pencil.
Once again she locked herself in the bathroom, she had started drawing her map for Social Studies when she heard, 'rat-a-tat, tap, rat-a-tat, tap' .
She tried to ignore him, but the longer she was lilent the louder he got. "Bogart, Mom has your dinner." The thumping stopped. Once her homework was done, she went to the kitchen to get a snack. Bogart was on the table, so Dezi gave him a bowl of cereal. She
started feeling sorry for him, so she picked him up and rubbed his back as she walked towards her room. When they had made it to the door, Bogart jumped out of her arms and took off running.
"Ahhhhhh, Bogart, where are you? Look what you've done to my room." While she cleaned up the mess, she came across two boxes of pencils. This gave her an idea.
The next day Dezi sat on her bed to do her homework, she had learned that if she changed where she sat it took Bogart a little bit to time to find her. As soon as he did, she was ready for the fun to start. First she gave him a pencil to play with, and started her
Science worksheet. He bounced off the bed and hid the pencil. Leaping back up on the bed, he landed in her lap, grabbed her pencil and threw it on the floor. Dezi, calmly reached in her bag and pulled out another pencil. Bogart knocked it out of her hand. Then she reached
under her pillow and pulled out another pencil. Bogart started jumping up and down on Dezi's lap, grabbed the pencil and ran out of the room.
Dezi finished her science homework and was starting her math when Bogart ran back into the room and sat by her feet. 'Thump, thump, tsk, tsss' went his tail against her legs. He jumped up on the bed and began hitting her arm with his tail. Bogart grabbed her
pencil and threw it across the room. Dezi got another pencil out, he grabbed it and broke it. She pulled another pencil out, he threw it across the room. This went on and on until Bogart gave up and sat still next to Dezi while she did her homework.
Dezi realized that if she didn't react to what Bogart did, he would quit. She used this method whenever he would take her stuff or throw things at her. Finally he calmed down and would just follow her around. When she sat to do her homework, he would take one
pencil and leave her alone. Dezi soon undrstood that all he wanted was to be showed some love.