Wagner is blaring on the stereo. And here I sit in the midst of war-planning.
The Sudentland and Poland are safe. But Aedes aegypti and her ilk had best pack up their carbon dioxide-detectors. Because I am irritated.
Rather, my skin is irritated. My lower legs are as red and bumpy as a teenager's left cheek. All from mosquito bites.
I am accustomed to battling them during the day when I sit on my patio and write. The usual attackers are the species that carries Yellow and Dengue Fever, and wanders around at all hours of the day. That is why I have my arsenal of Off and Raid at hand. Both cans are well-used.
But I expect my house to be a vector-free zone. The windows and doors are screened. With the exception of the occasional hitchhiker, I seldom find mosquitoes in the house.
That changed on Friday night. I found at least a dozen in the living room while I was wasting time watching a few episodes of Downton Abbey. (I really do not understand the attraction. It is little more than a telenovela with less yelling, mugging, and skin -- but a lot more tweed.)
Saturday night was the same. And Sunday. And Monday. By last night, I found them in the living room, the kitchen, the bathroom, and, of course, my bedroom. Repeated applications of Raid seemed only to encourage them.
This afternoon I went into the guest bedroom to retrieve the Wagner. And discovered why my casa has become an aedic aviary. The sliding screen on the window was open.
I have no idea why. Maybe Dora was cleaning and forgot to close it. Or I may have opened it to chat with the writer and his wife who were staying upstairs this week.
The Sudentland and Poland are safe. But Aedes aegypti and her ilk had best pack up their carbon dioxide-detectors. Because I am irritated.
Rather, my skin is irritated. My lower legs are as red and bumpy as a teenager's left cheek. All from mosquito bites.
I am accustomed to battling them during the day when I sit on my patio and write. The usual attackers are the species that carries Yellow and Dengue Fever, and wanders around at all hours of the day. That is why I have my arsenal of Off and Raid at hand. Both cans are well-used.
But I expect my house to be a vector-free zone. The windows and doors are screened. With the exception of the occasional hitchhiker, I seldom find mosquitoes in the house.
That changed on Friday night. I found at least a dozen in the living room while I was wasting time watching a few episodes of Downton Abbey. (I really do not understand the attraction. It is little more than a telenovela with less yelling, mugging, and skin -- but a lot more tweed.)
Saturday night was the same. And Sunday. And Monday. By last night, I found them in the living room, the kitchen, the bathroom, and, of course, my bedroom. Repeated applications of Raid seemed only to encourage them.
This afternoon I went into the guest bedroom to retrieve the Wagner. And discovered why my casa has become an aedic aviary. The sliding screen on the window was open.
I have no idea why. Maybe Dora was cleaning and forgot to close it. Or I may have opened it to chat with the writer and his wife who were staying upstairs this week.
Whatever the reason, I hope the female vampire tide is at an end. I wandered through the house spraying Raid in the dark recesses where some mosquitoes like to hide.
And if vampires are going to start showing up in the middle of the night at my house, why can't they look a bit more like Salma Hayek?
Come to think of i
t, why don't the women in Downton Abbey look more like Salma Hayek?Come to think of i
But that may just be another reason why I live in Mexico rather than in an English country house.
