Well. Summer is officially here.

mosquitoes, or hardly any other biting insects. We also don't have snakes except for a few garden type snakes. We have a few Mexicans and a lot of Indians, but they don't cause any trouble. We are getting some gang activity coming over from southern California but most don't stay, as their low riders don't do well in 3 feet of snow. Got a lot of coyotes, bears and mountain lions and beginning to have some wolves. We are about 2½ months away from our first hard frost and about 3½ months from our first snow. So all is well in Reederville. Like they say, summertime and the livin' is easy.

only the edge! Stood there maybe 5 minutes, wearing boots and full length jeans. Friday night too late. They got me! Chiggers! The scourge of the South. Ankles, calves, behind the knees, stopped short of the Mason Dixon, mercifully. Almost invisible white (then red after they begin eating you) cousins of micro-spiders. They bore into your hide injecting this stuff that liquefies your skin which they suck up as they go. After they are through it's the body's reaction to the bored hole and it's exposure to air that makes it itch. SO when you begin to itch you are already got.

Simple solutions are to cover the affected area/holes to prevent air getting to them. It is agonizing and something you can do without. Plan ahead, use Deet BEFORE you need it. It makes me want to move to the South Pole. Way worse than ticks, which are bad, but you can feel them and remove before bit many times.