March 8 was our first day in our new home. I have thought many times that I should post something because there were certainly things to write about. We are now in our seventh month in the forest. We survived the huge effort of moving in, picking up cars, unpacking (most) things, getting rid of many things and being reminded of how many bugs there are in an American forest--at least in this one! I lived on the edge of a huge forest in Germany and could walk for hours in it without being bothered by bugs. Here, I think mosquitoes would fly through three states for the joy of attacking even two inches of my exposed flesh. Go outside to work in the garden, walk to the mailbox, walk in the neighborhood--swarms of gnats gather around our heads, get in our eyes.
As lovely as the location and house are, the bugs have frustrated us so much we thought we couldn't live here. Trust me, 18 itching mosquito bites from knees to feet will keep you from sleeping! It is now September and the critter concentration seems a bit lower. By now I have a huge selection of bug bite prevention and/or treatment. Off, Cutter, Skin so Soft, organic all-natural for the preventing (none of them 100%). Afterbite (smells strongly of ammonia), anti-itch creams and Zyrtex antihistamine for the dealing with. The creams seem the best. The Zyrtex wired me to the point nothing would make me sleep that night. Not a good thing considering I had a 40-minute drive the next morning to an art class. A neighbor suggested I wear a big straw hat because the gnats won't go under the brim. Mostly true, I found. I'm not a pretty sight--tall socks, long pants, long sleeves, gloves, layers of spray and giant hat--sometimes with a dryer sheet tucked into the band for extra measure, another bit of advice. Add to that misery, unusually high heat and humidity and the cool fresh air of Germany beckons to us daily. Sigh.
As lovely as the location and house are, the bugs have frustrated us so much we thought we couldn't live here. Trust me, 18 itching mosquito bites from knees to feet will keep you from sleeping! It is now September and the critter concentration seems a bit lower. By now I have a huge selection of bug bite prevention and/or treatment. Off, Cutter, Skin so Soft, organic all-natural for the preventing (none of them 100%). Afterbite (smells strongly of ammonia), anti-itch creams and Zyrtex antihistamine for the dealing with. The creams seem the best. The Zyrtex wired me to the point nothing would make me sleep that night. Not a good thing considering I had a 40-minute drive the next morning to an art class. A neighbor suggested I wear a big straw hat because the gnats won't go under the brim. Mostly true, I found. I'm not a pretty sight--tall socks, long pants, long sleeves, gloves, layers of spray and giant hat--sometimes with a dryer sheet tucked into the band for extra measure, another bit of advice. Add to that misery, unusually high heat and humidity and the cool fresh air of Germany beckons to us daily. Sigh.
Hmm, I forgot to mention the "nasty quadrupeds" otherwise known as deer. While bugs are eating me, deer are eating my plants. Is there no end to all this munching?
There are many good things to write about but I thought I'd get the gripes out of the way first. Happy things in the next post.
There are many good things to write about but I thought I'd get the gripes out of the way first. Happy things in the next post.
Photos with this post: Four-inch lunar moth on the wall of our garage. Caterpillar (soon to be black swallowtail butterfly) on a parsley plant on my deck. Critters that bring me joy, not bites!
No comments:
Post a Comment