Abandon ship!

I live in Florida (near a lake), so cockroaches are just a part of life. We clean up and put out the usual bug deterrents, but there's no way to eliminate every single one.

Yep, I'm about to tell a bug story.

This morning, while I was getting ready for the day, I saw something brown scuttle across my bathroom wall. From the corner of my eye, it actually looked like a scorpion. I'm not an expert on scorpions, but I'm also fairly certain that I don't want them in my house. So I jumped back, alarmed, and found with relief that it was just a roach.

Let me clarify: I don't like roaches, either. Scorpions are just a bit scarier.

Only this roach looked... wrong. Deformed or sick, maybe. Something was hanging off of its back end.

Imagine for a moment the kind of horror that rushed through my mind as I tried to figure out what terrible, radioactive chemicals were leaking into my house and actually causing the insects to develop frightening growths. I stood there in fear and disgust, my jaw hanging open and my skin crawling. 

It got away from me before I could react. That thing is still loose in the house, even as I type.

Later, of course, I realized what I had seen. This was no nuclear bug. It was a roach with an ootheca -- an egg sack.

Aw, the miracle of life.  *shudders*

The way I see it, roaches (and a number of other insects and arachnids) are real-life monsters. Think about it: their feely legs (far too many of them), their preference for dark, dirty places, the fact that many of them literally feed on your blood, the way their eyes are nearly always hidden from clear view, their ability to climb walls and fly and land in your hair at just the worst-possible moment...

Obviously, I have to give up my territory to the invader. There is no way I can win this battle. Every time I come into contact with it, I will stand trapped somewhere between terror and nausea, and the monster will defeat me. So I'm sending up the white flag.

I was never cut out to battle monsters.

Beach Bouquet

Just a quick note about this past weekend.

I went to the beach, and it was lovely. Since we live in Florida, we have the option of going to either the Atlantic or the Gulf, and we normally choose the Gulf. It’s very relaxing there, and that’s exactly what we needed.

My skin is about as pale as a sheet of notebook paper, so I’m not usually the type to romp around in the sun, but I still love to lie back in the warmth and listen to the waves.

Yesterday my dad and I sat in chairs on the sand while my mom and my husband swam in the water. After a while, Rob walked up to me, dripping wet, and handed me a very nice arrangement of odd sea-things. He told me it was a gift that he and my mom had made for me out in the water. It was a bouquet.

 

I loved it.

Marching to the Cliffs of Moher

Welcome to March! I like this month. In Florida, it's a bit windy and chilly, but still comfortable enough to have a nice time outside in the sun. Perfect weather.

To me, March means St. Patrick's Day, and the second anniversary of my trip to Ireland. Two years ago, my family and I spent a little over a week traveling the most beautiful country in the world, and I will never forget a moment of it.

It was bitterly cold, but one of the best times of my life. I can't wait to go back one day!

Here in Florida, the weather is much nicer, though the land isn't as green.

However, just because the weather's perfect doesn't mean my schedule is! I'm up to my ears in things to do, but I just had to pop on here to say hello. :) Hope everyone's reading something great and being happy.

What does March mean to you?

Living with Winter

For Florida, it’s pretty cold. There aren’t tons of winter clothes available in this state, so, for the week or so in the early part of each year when temperatures actually drop down to the 30s, most Floridians wander around with bewildered, slightly irritated expressions on our faces, frozen to the bone by the wind that cuts right through our thin shirts.

Tonight’s one of those nights. I walked out to my car and felt as though bits of ice were forming on my arms. My dog Sprocket (who recently had a haircut, poor thing) hides in the electric blanket and refuses to go anywhere else unless it’s absolutely necessary. The cats, Coretta and Othello, are equally as snuggly.

There is one benefit to the uncomfortable cold – though the weather here never has enough manners to at least bring us a single snowflake – and that is that we can see our own breath. For a few days each year, Floridians return to the thrill of being seven years old and comparing icy breath with their friends. Since it happens so rarely, it’s a fun event for us each time.

Or maybe just for me. ☺

In any case, tonight I’m wrapping up with blankets inside and pets and writing.

What is living with winter like in other parts of the world?