Water Bugs.....aaaaauuuuuggghhhhh!!!!!!

I woke up this morning and enjoyed the sound of calves calling to their mama's in the barn. Random birds are cheerily sharing the gossip, and the bees are humming by my window.

Wait. Bees?

There is a wasp nest being constructed in the window frame right next to my side of the bed. Fascinating really. I moved the window just a little bit yesterday to open it, and suddenly there was an amazing amount of little black and gold fellas buzzing around, a little angrily I might add.

Don't let the black and gold fool you... they may look like Steeler fans, but they aren't. Therefore, I had no problem with the can of Raid being pointed valiantly at them by my knight in shining armor, Leo. With great courage and a strong heart, he eradicated the wasps in the early morning hours of dawn.

As I hid under the covers, Leo saved the day. Be still my beating heart.
I love that he is always willing to get rid of the spiders, the bees, the stinkbugs, bats, rats, mice and snakes that invade house and barn. He is my hero.

When I was a kid, the house we lived in had what we called "water-bugs". They were big, with striped bodies and big muscular jumping legs. Seriously, when they jumped across the kitchen floor, you could actually hear them land. Because we lived in the basement while the upstairs was still being finished, we always had water bugs in the bedroom. I guess they liked the cooler environment and the block walls. The bathroom was their other favorite hangout.


Before going to the bathroom, you would cautiously peer around the toilet, scanning the wall for any suspicious movement or the twitch of an antennae. There is nothing worse than perching on the throne to do your business, only to have a water bug jump at you, or even worse, on you.

Sorry, I am back now. I had to run screaming from the room. Flashbacks and all.

My dad was always willing to catch the water bug, or bugs as they usually traveled in pairs. We girls would frantically call him, or at least frantically whisper for him as we were afraid that if we were too loud, it would cause the bug to move. Dad, my other valiant knight, would come to the rescue, often plucking the creature up alive, in his bare hands, and removing it from the house.

Of course, he would tease us, just a little, coming closer than we thought necessary. Then we'd squeal loudly; kinda like the three pigs, we were.


Once, after a date with Leo, we were standing on the porch anticipating the good-night kiss, I was sure I felt a water bug crawling inside of my pant leg. I didn't want him to know it, and I tried to remain calm. Just breathe. I am sure he wondered as he drove home that night just why I was so eager for him to kiss me quick and leave. Believe me, that was not my normal behavior. After he left, I shook all over, and stripped off my jeans as quickly as I could. No water bug. At least not that I found. It still makes me shiver.

Aaron is in the process right now of cleaning out a back room in the basement to transform it into a man cave/bedroom. I hope he brought his suit of armor, he may need it in the weeks to come. Or at the very least, a can of Raid.

Basement + dampness + coolness = Waterbug Heaven

Okay, I need to run screaming from the room again.

Love,
Dianne