A Season for Bugs

Despite the dire warnings of blizzards on the eastern slope of the Rockies, snow on Mauna Kea, 5.+ earthquakes at Pu'u O'o volcano, and other tidbits of excitement offered by Mother nature, it really is spring. It must be. The bugs are out in force. There's been a cockroach (mostly the 2" variety)in the shower on his/her back with legs in the air every morning this week. Darn things haven't been dead, just upside-down. The bug spray now has a permanent home in the bathroom so the roaches can get squirted and dead before I attempt to transfer them to the disposal center, aka toilet.

Tonight another of the big guys was wandering around the living room. He made the mistake of staying put long enough for me to retrieve the spray and gas him, too. That meant opening all the windows so as to not gas my mother and myself in the process of getting rid of the roaches.

Had been congratulating myself for finally getting the ant invasions in the kitchen under control, then found ants there this morning. Also found another set wandering around in my bed. Hey, the sheets really are clean! Out came the chalk dispenser of Dead Fast -- quickly, before they really got out of control. My bedroom now has a new set of concentric circles and squares surrounding known ant entry points and paths to anywhere. The white lines barely show against the very pale lemon green (I think it's called "candlelight", kind of a creamy yellow with a hint of green)of the walls.

The Pest Control man sprayed outside on Tuesday. Maybe that's why the bugs have moved inside. Interesting concept.

Now, having watched the first televised night of Merrie Monarch Hula Festival competition, I'm off to tackle whatever's invading the kitchen tonight. More hula tomorrow, from 6 p.m. Hawaiian time, streaming on www.kitv.com if you are not in Hawaii.

Give thanks for Dead Fast and cockroaches that succumb to aerosol sprays. Simple Green is also effective for drowning the beasts. It's also warm enough to open the windows and not breathe in the gas. Don't forget to pray!