It's bugging me
 

The bugs. I can't take anymore of the damned bugs.

I've tried Off, Cutting or Cutter whatever it's called and the latest in my arsenal which is Natrapel.

Nothing's working and I'm getting bitten to death during the day when I go down the farm. Short of using Frontline is there anything here that works?

Bad Blood :D

Re: It's bugging me
 

Move to somewhere that doesn't have so many bugs?

Ok, not particularly helpful I know...... :D

Re: It's bugging me
 

Hi Sibs,

The bugs are always after me as well... really bad reactions too... and what I found to actually help was Avon bug repellant. It comes both mixed in with sunscreen or just as a repellant. That was like a miracle for me... for the first time in my life I found something that actually worked. Maybe you can give it a try.... Good luck anyway!

Elaine :)

Ahhh another reason I adore the North West :beer:

Re: It's bugging me
 

Try Avon's "Skin So Soft"- it is reported tp be the best bug repellant there is (even though it was a skin cream by intention). Yhey now even advertise it as a bug repellant.

YEP!...Avon Skin So Soft,works great,and it doesn't stink like the others,and it makes your skin feel nice as well!
I've been the same way with the bugs ever since I came to Illinois as well,the minute I step outside they all think I'm their own 'smorgasborg'!!!,I also found that the best time to be outside is when it's sunny but windy,I've even thought about setting a fan up so I can go and just sit outside for a while!!!
Sophia

As someone who has an extreme reaction to bug bites I've found that Burts Bees creams are wonderful, they dont smell chemically like OFF or Cutter, arent greasy and they do the job !!!
I've also heard that Avons bug repellant is good.

Jan :)

Cheers. I'll try the Avon and Burts stuff. I've got so many lumps and bumps now I look like a Dalek.

We wil d-o-m-i-n-a-t-e the u-n-i-v-e-r-s-e. (The bugs, that is.)

Ewww don't I know the feeling! I am covered right now too and yet no-one in work seems to be having the same problem - they must like our blood better or something :D

I'm gonna try the Avon stuff too as it's what everyone seems to recommend. I'm having my apartment sprayed on Tuesday as the last couple of days I've been finding these dead little bugs (tiny, almost like flies but with beady brown eyes yuck) around the carpet. Disgusting.

Which brings me to another point - should I get the cats out of there when they come to spray??? I don't want to ask the apartment people as they are hopeless and clueless and I wouldn't take their word for anything.

Anyone want to come to Memphis for the weekend? It's really great - a weekend forecast of a heat index of 107, bugs galore and a car with no AC to travel in - how could anyone resist! :D

YES!!! Most definately- cats are extremely sensitive to pesticides. You might even think about keeping it away 2-3 days until the levels drop a bit. Houseplants also should be removed

Re: It's bugging me
 

Let us know if you feel the need to go and wee in the front yard! ;)

If you put your foot over your head and lick your bum, don't forget to wash your paws.

;)

try a wetsuit .... let's see the little buggers chomp through that ..

:D

Mosquitos hold conventions to find me so I can tell you that sometimes you'll get bitten anyway, no matter what you use.

But if you put amonia on the bite it will never itch. NEVER!

The little buggers go after me too, I have also been using Avon Skin-So-Soft to good effect. If I do happen to get bitten, I've found the best thing is to dab the bite with rubbing alcohol as soon as possible. Someone told me last week that eating a lot of garlic keeps them away, but it might just keep everyone else away too! :D

Possibly a stupid question. Can you buy Avon in shops or is it only from the ding dong lady?

Re: It's bugging me
 

If I could do that...
:p

I bought mine online!
http://shop.avon.com/avonshop/default.asp - the left-hand menu has it listed under "outdoor protection" ;) and it looks like it's half price at the moment!

Debbie

Thanks Debbie, I've ordered a load. Top price too. :D

Yeah it isn't a bad price is it... Glad you were able to find it, it's amazing stuff. :)

Where'd Frank go btw? :D

Elaine :)

I am becoming more and more convinced that the bugs over here target ones like us with 'foreign' blood. My wife doesn't seem to get bitten much, and the bites don't react with her, but with me they turn into horrible sores that take ages to heal.

Steve

I have to admit that the bugs are one thing I don't miss about NC. Our apartment seemed to be a meeting house for the local centipede population - some of the were pretty big too..

I got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, switched the light on and there was one about four inches long in the middle of the bathroom floor....when I went towards it, it reared up and waved its anntenae (and its front twenty legs) in a very agressive way as if to say 'You want some, eh?? Come on then, I'll have ya!!).

Needless to say, one of us had to leave, and it wasn't me....

So far the bug population in WA seems on a pretty UK level...anyone know any different...??

Biting insect regions

CONNECTICUT:Tabanids: Chrysops or deer flies with green or golden eyes very common and of many varieties. Prevalent May to August with June worst. Often fly around the head. Some specialize in sea coast and marshes, others in boggy woods, others dry woods.



Who are they kidding... we've got bloody everything.

Preventative measures click here!

Well today I resorted to using a thing called Tri-Wound. I use it on my horse for cuts and grazes. It's yellow and gloopy, stinks to high heave but it seemed to work on me.

does anybody else have a problem with "chiggers" or are they a Texan thing?

No but I have a real problem with Cheggars. I kill myself. Really I do.
:D

showing your age ...

and mine ...

and what right did he have to Maggie Philbin anyway?

Re: It's bugging me
 

I used *everything* when living in Belize (let's talk *bugs*). After watching a drop of Jungle Juice (99% deet) melt a hole in the lino, I had to find a solution. My mom sent me some eucalyptus oil spray and I was cured!

I now make my own mix; essential oil of eucalyptus, couple drops of glycerin and water in a spritz bottle. Everyone's chemistry is different, but this one works for me (skin so soft does work for some bugs, but attracts dirt to stick to your skin). Citronella, for example, doesn't do much for me, but I like to add lavender to the euc. oil spray. I've never found a remedy for the itch, and I've tried everything (ice, amonia, etc etc etc).

Since the female mosquitoes that do the biting are drawn to the scent of your carbon dioxide exhales (hey, that's what I heard), you can always try not breathing ;)

PS: look for Avon in mall kiosks now!

OK.. now this is gross...
 

I have a bug mystery.... last night about 9.30 I was coming home, parked my car and as I walked towards the stairs at my apt I thought I saw like a ton of tiny leaves blowing around and I'm thinking hmmm that's odd - as I got closer I noticed the ground was TOTALLY covered with these disgusting huge bugs. They were almost like a red/orange color - sort of like an ugly ladybird without the black dots and they were everywhere - I mean gross - totally. I ran through them and as I did it was like they were trying to get off the ground - I think they were dying or something and the odd one had made it upstairs.

Yuck. Yuck. Yuck. Anyone got any clue what they could have been? In their droves - literally!

Re: OK.. now this is gross...
 

Its The Return of the Cicadas.

Re: OK.. now this is gross...
 

Don't they come every 14 years or something? Due this year......

Anyone got 'em? Fortunately they don't migrate up this far.

Re: OK.. now this is gross...
 

It seems that there are several different kinds on different cycles - 17 yr, 5 yr, 2 yr, you name it. Here there seem to be some every summer, some years are just more intense that others.

We haven't had the invasion of the cicadas either. Shame - quite fancied seeing them in their full glory.;)

Garlic and lemon juice works well when sprayed on your garden. Also eating lots of garlic works and rubbing lemon juice on your skin.

However, I have tried absolutely everything (including the skin so soft) and I still get bitten (although no where near as much as I used to) if I go out at dusk so I have to stay indoors. I get a bad reaction where the area swells up and is very painful where I get bitten. The spraying of the garden, however, has helped the children not get bitten as much.

Should keep the neighbours nicely under control too.:D

We were bitten a lot by mozzies when we first moved to Singapore; although a modern city state it still has patches of rainforests and jungle. We arrived during one of the twice-yearly monsoon seasons which didn't help as mozzies breed in stagnant water and there is plenty of that around in a tropical climate (the island is 85 miles north of the Equator).

Another expat told me that most Westerners get bitten a lot when they first move to a new abode, then after a few months it gets less and less....however we realised that we were eating a lot more garlic as it is used liberally in Asian cooking. We really were rarely getting mozzie bites after a few months - I truly think I've been bitten more since I've moved to New Jersey than I ever was in Singapore (although virtually all the condos are 'fogged' each month which of course is rare in a single family house in the US).

If you can't bear to eat lots of garlic, then do try garlic pearls (capsules) which you can swallow with a drink of water. I really ought to be following my own advice methinks! :D

You can always trust good old Dr. Weil!

http://www.drweil.com/app/cda/drw_cd...uestionId=3020

We're being swamped by wierd looking light green, flying grasshopper type things at the moment. They're all congregating on the white screen doors and leaping in the house at the first opportunity.......

I HATE INSECTS!!!! :mad: