Bite/Sting...Whatever!

  Down here in the Deep South (probably in a lot of other places, as well), we deal with a lot of critters.  I am usually pretty tolerant of most as I chose a mantra of "Live and let live".  I do, however, draw the line with things that bite/sting me, eat my garden or eat my house.  Yep, I am talking bugs here.  Our bout with termites eating the house (thanks, Hurricane Katrina) and an onslaught of weird grasshoppers eating the garden has taught me a couple of things.  First...be sure to take care of those critters right away.  Do not assume that because you only see a few, there are no more.  There are and they will soon wreak havoc on everything.   Several types of the critters are literally trying to eat us out of house and home.  We are dealing...slowly. Two...be careful where you step as some of the critters inflict pain!  Causing them to go into defensive mode is asking for trouble!

  One type of critter that is the bane of my existence is the fire ant.  These ants excavate massive hives beneath the ground and create large mounds above ground.  I am ok with ants being around the place as they do serve a purpose.  They clean up dead things or rotted things.  The stench of what could be is not a happy thought.  I am grateful for that but I am not overly happy with the critters biting/stinging me.  I do realize that they are trying to defend their territory but it just happens that this is also my territory.  Accidentally stepping on the side trails of an ant mound can lead to a leg full of nasty pus-filled lesions that can linger for a week or more.  To those that are allergic or weakened, a number of the bites/stings can cause severe medical issues.  

  As you may have noticed, I keep saying bite/sting and that is not an oversight.  Fire ants bite only to get a good grip on you so they can use their stinger which is located on their posterior end.  The stinger is loaded with venom that causes serious pain!  It is because of this, that fire ants are not on my "Like List".  This afternoon, I was traipsing about behind the canebrake when I accidentally stepped on one of those side trails leading to a mound.  Immediately, my leg felt like it was on fire!  The red, swollen areas still itch tonight and it is driving me crazy!!  Fire ants are evil beings!  After the rains that supposed to set in tonight, I shall be out hunting down those critters and exterminating all I can.  This is war!