Journal of a Sabbatical

bug update

June 12,1998

Previous Entry Journal Index	x	x	x	I called an exterminator: Me: I have bugs. Exterminator: What are they? Me: I don't know, they're little and grayish black. Exterminator: Are they little tiny ants? Me: They don't look like ants. Exterminator: What are they? Me: Tiny little bugs coming out of the air conditioner. They look like some kind of mites. There's a bird's nest in the air conditioner where they're coming from. Exterminator: A bird's nest? Me: Yes. A bird's nest. Exterminator: You have to get rid of the birds first. You'll have to call a wildlife place. We don't do birds. Me: But what about the bugs? Exterminator: Get rid of the birds. Vacuum up the bugs with your vacuum cleaner. Throw away the bag when you're done. Spray the area lightly very lightly with Raid. It don't take much, they're so tiny. That'll take care of your problem. Why am I not comforted by this? Nancy calls and suggests taping a plastic tarp over the air conditioner until the baby starlings leave the nest, then call a different exterminator. Kevin calls and asks if I can get the kids at pickups instead of their taking the bus 'cause Lizzy has crutches for her cracked toe. I say I will. I stare at the yellow pages wondering if I should just call a bird exterminator. I decide lunch and coffee are the highest priorities so I go out and grab some lunch, take t it to Starbucks, and sit with lunch and coffee and a newspaper. Philosophy Larry comes in and tells me it's finally happened. The unnamed state college has announced they are eliminating the philosophy department. Larry talks about this for 45 minutes straight. I suggest getting the students to picket the president's office with signs saying "Save the Philosophy Department!' Larry goes back to correcting his students' papers. I go back to the newspaper. Grrr. Wish I hadn't done that. The news makes me even more depressed than the demise of the philosophy department. A group of mothers in Lawrence are evacuating their children to New Hampshire on Sunday so they won't accidentally see the gay pride parade (the first ever for Lawrence). The mothers at Iglesia de Dios are afraid their children will see members of the same sex touching each other. I'm not making this up. The parade organizers are worried that young Dominican and Puerto Rican queers will be afraid to come to the parade. I really feel for the queers in the Latino community young and old.
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