Random thoughts about whatever

Welcome to Wondercafe2!

A community where we discuss, share, and have some fun together. Join today and become a part of it!

Register Log in
Funny you should be discussing infestations of various kinds. I know the unit I just moved into once had cockroaches by the odour. (Of course I didn't smell it when I viewed the place). I was told I'd be getting new cupboards once the "supply chain issue" was resolved. Since then, a couple other tenants have told me not to hold my breath. When I say the cupboards are gross, this is after a thorough scrubbing with a soapy bleach solution. They still smell like urine. I keep all the cupboard doors and drawers open to keep air circulating. I have put everything in containers and keep garbage in the freezer. I won't put anything in the cupboard that will pick up the smell. I haven't seen any bugs or their poop and shells.
Last weekend, I was sitting in the living room, waves of super strong insecticide hit me and actually made me feel sick and dizzy. I believe I'm supposed to be notified when this happens. I now know why I haven't seen bugs. I think they are hoping to kill them completely before installing the cupboards. I don't even want to imagine what's behind them.
There's an old maintenance guy here I suspect hasn't a clue what he's doing and acts independently to "fix" things. Not a professional exterminator. Just a guess.
Jeeeeeez
 
The bug inspector came and we don’t have bedbugs. My bites/ skin thing is a one off/ unknown. He said it’s not possible to verify by one patch of bites. Could’ve been a spider hiding out, or more than one. It hasn’t happened again in nearly 2 weeks. People who get bites are the best indicator. They tend to keep happening. But he said only 40% of people have any reaction so most people don’t know they are infested until it’s a big problem and quite obvious. Unless you are sensitive to bites. And he said repellents and stuff like essential oils are not fool proof enough to prevent a hungry bedbug. There would be other indicators and he didn’t find any. Nothing on my mattress or bedframe or near the bed where they hide out. In the corners, curtains close by etc. No poop marks or bloodstains or eggs. He went under the frame with a light, looked in all the cracks and joints. Nothing in my roommates room or couch etc. He said you can get bitten while being somewhere and never see it. The reaction is often a day or two later if you’re reactive. If you are in places (could be anywhere public or somebody’s home) where you suspect you may have been exposed, take your clothes off in the bathtub or shower when you get home and if there are any in your clothes they will run off you and you can wash them down the drain (I would put soap - heck, bleach - down it and clean the tub). Then seal your clothes in a garbage bag and wash them asap.
 
Last edited:
Kimmio Laughterlove said:
The bug inspector came and we don’t have bedbugs. My bites/ skin thing is a one off/ unknown. He said it’s not possible to verify by one patch of bites. Could’ve been a spider hiding out, or more than one. It hasn’t happened again in nearly 2 weeks. People who get bites are the best indicator. They tend to keep happening. But he said only 40% of people have any reaction so most people don’t know they are infested until it’s a big problem and quite obvious. Unless you are sensitive to bites. And he said repellents and stuff like essential oils are not fool proof enough to prevent a hungry bedbug. There would be other indicators and he didn’t find any. Nothing on my mattress or bedframe or near the bed where they hide out. In the corners, curtains close by etc. No poop marks or bloodstains or eggs. He went under the frame with a light, looked in all the cracks and joints. Nothing in my roommates room or couch etc. He said you can get bitten while being somewhere and never see it. The reaction is often a day or two later if you’re reactive. If you are in places (could be anywhere public or somebody’s home) where you suspect you may have been exposed, take your clothes off in the bathtub or shower when you get home and if there are any in your clothes they will run off you and you can wash them down the drain (I would put soap - heck, bleach - down it and clean the tub). Then seal your clothes in a garbage bag and wash them asap.
Click to expand...
Glad to hear you don't have them!
 
ninj said:
Funny you should be discussing infestations of various kinds. I know the unit I just moved into once had cockroaches by the odour. (Of course I didn't smell it when I viewed the place). I was told I'd be getting new cupboards once the "supply chain issue" was resolved. Since then, a couple other tenants have told me not to hold my breath. When I say the cupboards are gross, this is after a thorough scrubbing with a soapy bleach solution. They still smell like urine. I keep all the cupboard doors and drawers open to keep air circulating. I have put everything in containers and keep garbage in the freezer. I won't put anything in the cupboard that will pick up the smell. I haven't seen any bugs or their poop and shells.
Last weekend, I was sitting in the living room, waves of super strong insecticide hit me and actually made me feel sick and dizzy. I believe I'm supposed to be notified when this happens. I now know why I haven't seen bugs. I think they are hoping to kill them completely before installing the cupboards. I don't even want to imagine what's behind them.
There's an old maintenance guy here I suspect hasn't a clue what he's doing and acts independently to "fix" things. Not a professional exterminator. Just a guess.
Jeeeeeez
Click to expand...
That sounds awful! Sorry, ninj. We have had new cupboards put in, and pipes. It was a decision made by the building co-op
before I moved in that I don’t think has been worth the disruptions and hassle (I can only speak for myself when saying because the budget is limited they put new wine in new old wine skins and I’d have rather they spent the money on better locks and security) - but anyway putting in cupboards (tearing out out old ones) and pipes can sometimes agitate a seemingly dormant infestation of many kinds.
 
Last edited:
I find it hard not to think of these things no matter how some say they pray not to ... it is just a phase! (albeit shocking)
 
This courtesy of Charles Stross and his fine blog, Charlie's Diary (which has a robust and engaging commentary community--great comments on such varied things on Ukraine, Brexit, the publishing industry, Cthulhu mythos, the Queen)

Someone notioned on his blog
"Given the coming energy crisis, are British people investing in firewood, pellet stoves, coal stoves, propane or kerosene heaters, pre-purchased heating oil, or micro wind turbines?"

He answered,
"Firstly, the British population are poorer than you think -- think Kentucky or Mississippi; there are a lot of billionaires and a lot of people who already can't afford to run a hot shower once a week. Secondly, we're a very compact overwhelmingly urban nation--if the USA was populated to the same density as England there'd be 3 billion of you. Most cities are smoke-free zones where burning coal is outright illegal. Most domestic heating comes from natural gas delivered via pipes in the ground, stuff like fuel oil or firewood is either bulky or expensive."

Always nice for me to peek another culture from the inside so to speak :3
 
Delightful Life said:
Most cities are smoke-free zones where burning coal is outright illegal.
Click to expand...
Given what they went through between the industrial revolution and the post-war era, where air quality in places like London made ours look positively breathable, this is not surprising. Nothing to do with CO2, just the fact that coal is a terrible smog-producer when widely used.
 
As one who lived in London Fog believe me when I say it was filthy, very unhealthy and disruptive. Some pulmonologists say they have more lung disease patients in my age group from the UK than Canada. I recall the early days of smokeless fuel, and also the efforts to clean up the River Thames.
 
Mendalla said:
Given what they went through between the industrial revolution and the post-war era, where air quality in places like London made ours look positively breathable, this is not surprising. Nothing to do with CO2, just the fact that coal is a terrible smog-producer when widely used.
Click to expand...
Yup.
That further constrains their options in surviving the coming winter and after
(Quite a few of the commentariat ar his blog are from richer countries like USA, so, they have different base assumptions. What works or can be done in USA looks like cannot or is more problematic in UK by what Charles Stross is saying. He is a socialist as well and that I think had bern stressing him as well...)

He has one post where he writes about all these factors that are conflating together to really really harsh his countryfolx's ability to...survive and thrive
Sounds absolutely brutal there

The thread is called "The Gathering Crisis"
 
KayTheCurler said:
As one who lived in London Fog believe me when I say it was filthy, very unhealthy and disruptive. Some pulmonologists say they have more lung disease patients in my age group from the UK than Canada. I recall the early days of smokeless fuel, and also the efforts to clean up the River Thames.
Click to expand...
Wow you got to experience it?
For how long?
How hard was it to wash off things?
 
www.theatlantic.com

Power Causes Brain Damage

How leaders lose mental capacities—most notably for reading other people—that were essential to their rise
www.theatlantic.com www.theatlantic.com

"How leaders lose mental capacities that were essential to their rise"

And how too much wealth causes brain damage :3
(Like inability to empathize. As always, Dont believe this--belief is the death of intelligence-- but rather grok the study and then if it passes your sniff test then it can be useful to use as a frame for other aspects of life)
 
KayTheCurler said:
and also the efforts to clean up the River Thames.
Click to expand...

The Mersey was awful, as well. First time I went to Liverpool, we went to the docks, and the smell of that river was indescribable. Now, it's clean enough that it has fish swimming in it, and it looks and smells like a normal body of water, not a sewer.
 
BetteTheRed said:
The Mersey was awful, as well. First time I went to Liverpool, we went to the docks, and the smell of that river was indescribable. Now, it's clean enough that it has fish swimming in it, and it looks and smells like a normal body of water, not a sewer.
Click to expand...
I used to think Liverpool was so far away and then I actually went to London and saw an actual map and saw how closer everything was

My wife had a series of books all about people ekeing their lives out in Liverpool. One of them spent a lot of the book having to figure out how to both support their family and go to work across the river which required money...


Still slogging through Road to Wiggan Pier...
 
Manchester is quite dodgy in spots. Last time we did the Cheshire Ring on the narrowboat, we tried to take special care to get through Manchester early-ish. Didn't manage as well as we'd like because every lock in downtown Manchester (and there's half a dozen or so) required two keys - your windlass, plus your anti-vandal key. Most locks just require a windlass. We spent the night in a quiet spot just inside of the city limits, which was enough to make my cuz nervous (and he lives near there, and he and his wife often go to Manchester for shows, music, etc.).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top