We certainly have a lot of "bug" stories, don't we? This is better than the flame war that sometimes seem to start up in August. Give me creepy crawly stories from the safety of the computer room any time!
Nova's wasp story reminded me that I have a wasp story of my own. A couple of years ago, in the fall, I took in a batch of laundry I had hung outdoors on the clothesline. The days were getting shorter and cooler, and so some of the heavier fabrics, like denim blue jeans, had not quite dried. So I put the whole batch into the dryer, thinking that at least they were partly dry. The next morning I pulled out a pair of my slacks to wear to work and put them on. As I walked to the kitchen I felt that jabbing pain Nova described -- like having a hot knitting needle spiked into you -- right where the back of the leg meets the buttock! YOW! I dropped those pants so fast! And sure enough, a wasp had ridden indoors on the laundry and survived its tumbling in the dryer. All I could think of was the fact that for me, wasp bites usually swell, and then they *itch*. I would be going to work (minus the wasp!), with an itchy wasp bite right on my backside! But strangely, this wasp bite, although it hurt, never started to itch. I slowly realized that it must have used up all of its venom stinging the laundry as it tumbled in the hot dryer! And I thanked goodness that the batch hadn't quite dried. Otherwise it might have been my hand, as I folded the laundry, that met up with the wasp. I learned my lesson -- when the wasps start looking for places to hibernate in the fall, I give up hanging laundry outdoors, even if the day is sunny and warm. It's not worth the wasp-roulette! Lynn Carpenter in SW Michigan, USA alwen at i2k dot com To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace-chat [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
