INVASIVE SPECIES

When you drive from the continental United States to Alaska and back it is necessary to drive through several provinces of Canada. As a result of this you have to cross the Canadian - U.S. Border four times. At each border crossing you are required to show your passport and to answer several questions. The border patrol officer will ask things like;
Where are you headed and how long are you staying?
Do you have any guns or alcohol in your vehicle?
Are you transporting any fruits or vegetables?
Are you carrying any fire wood?

In preparation for this third degree examination I was coached by My Man as to how to behave and what NOT to say to the officer. Basically it boiled down to "Shut up and Don't move!"  Apparently it is also a "no no" to crochet while crossing the Canadian border. (  I was crocheting a pillow cover using a very small gauge crochet hook which seemingly could have been mistaken for a machine gun.) And so I sat back and let The Man do all the talking. The first question is an easy one . . .  Alaska and Michigan.  As for the guns and alcohol, if I am traveling 6600 miles in a small RV do you seriously expect me to remain SOBER ?  And that would then also answer the gun question because you never put a gun in the hands of a crazy, drunk woman. As for the fruits and vegetables . . . Do I look like I am smuggling Brussel sprouts and pineapples ?  And firewood ? Why would I carry wood with me when I can pick it up on the side of the road ?  So much for all the silly questions. But I guess there is a very real threat of bringing an invasive species of bug from one country to another so they ask about things that could be hiding little critters.  Fortunately we did not have any uninvited guests traveling with us.

Lucky for us we weren't driving MY car through Canada!   Because I was going away for 2 full months I took the initiative of buying a cover for my car to protect it while it sat in my designated spot, under a tree in Florida, I figured the cover would protect it from the twigs and leaves and anything else that might fall from the tree.  Unfortunately the cover also provided a nice warm, dark hatching spot for ants and spiders. Two days after my return to Florida I found a spider swinging from my rear view mirror. I am not bothered by the average spider so I let it fall onto a tissue and then deposited it outside the car to continue on it's journey.  Little did I realize that Mr. Spider was in fact MRS. spider who must have made a nest and laid a TON of eggs in my car while it was sitting vacant for the 2 months. because the following day as I was driving down the road I realized there were tinny tiny little spiders running all over the dash board of my car. Every time I squished one 5 more would appear. It was sort of like the "Whack A Mole" game at a carnival. Then today when I opened the drivers door after taking my grand kids home I noticed a caravan of ants marching across the bottom of the car door frame. Upon further inspection I realized I had an entire colony of tiny ants living in the frame of all 4 car doors.  That was the final straw . . . Bug spray in hand I went into attack mode and sprayed the living hell out of anything and everything that moved. (Thankfully the grand kids were in their house by then.)

My car now smells like a toxic bomb went off in it so in spite of the 90 degree weather I will probably have to drive with the windows open for the next 3 weeks. But the bugs are GONE !

 At least the car bugs are gone. As I am sitting here typing I am noticing little tiny critters scurrying across my computer screen.