the ick factor

There is a certain something I don't like about Bermuda & didn't have to deal with until coming here. It's a hate commonly shared by many on the island. Some deal with it better than most but most I know don't like to deal with it at all. This is the one species that should be extinct. Before you get all Steve Irwin on me, you should know that it can survive a nuclear bomb (of all things!) or if rendered headless can stay alive for three weeks before dying of starvation. Are you grossed out yet? There's a reason this post is appropriately titled.

It's the dreaded cockroach & the ones here are huge & the females can bloody fly. Most of them live outside which is great but no matter how immaculate you keep your place you will find the ODD ONE somehow against all odds invading your home. We are lucky enough that we have only had the odd one come in. And that's when nip it in the bud. Kill the one & the others will dare not come in.

Sprays like Raid or Baygon work best. Some of you may have never heard of Baygon & rightly so. This highly potent roach spray is banned in North America but readily available in the UK, Asia & Middle East. And apparently also in Bermuda. But a little common sense should prevail when engaging in the Baygon/ roach war. You can't be hanging about your home once you have let Baygon saturate the air. Close shop for at least an hour, they say. Some people wonder why they have a pounding headache when they haven't bothered to stay clear from the fumes until it's worn off a bit. And it's definitely not safe to use if you have pets.

It's about to get ickier! And don't even think you can avoid the spray by getting slipper/shoe happy with the roach. If it's a female one you've just smacked then you can bet the eggs, if any have gone flying around the room. You are blissfully unaware of this fact until someone lets you in on the roach survival tactics. Defensive little buggers even in death, aren't they? So now you know!

Oh, I have heard of stories that will raise the ick factor to another level but I am grossed out enough as it is. I will say this, I prefer frogs & lizards to roaches any day. The frogs eat the roaches & the lizards eat the mosquitoes. But the island's frogs have decreased from 5 years past due to increased traffic that has contributed to frog roadkill. Oh why can't it be roach roadkill. Those miserable creatures. Oh, how I love putting them out of their misery when they encroach on my territory. Bring it on!