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Sunday, September 19, 2010

Brooklyn, we have a problem*

So, I decided I wasn't going to blog about this topic because 1) I don't think my husband would want me to and 2) it's kind of embarrassing and I don't want it to keep people from coming over...not that we have people over often. But, because this blog is more or less a journal I've been keeping for a few years, I think I need to blog about it. And journaling is a way for me to get my frustrations out and sometimes a way for me to see that my situation isn't all that bad. So here it is:

A few months ago Blake and I finally got to move to New York to be with Evan. It was a long 3 months of separation so we were happy to finally be a family again. All was well for about 2 weeks. One night I was sitting on a mattress we had on the floor because our stuff still hadn't arrived. I was playing with Blake when I looked over and saw...a roach. *gasp* I didn't even really stop to process what it was. I just saw something crawling towards me on the mattress, screamed, grabbed Blake, and ran into our living room. Blake started crying because I obviously scared the daylights out of him and Evan thought something had happened to Blake. Through gasps of air I tried to communicate to Evan that there was a roach in the other room and that he needed to go be the man of the house and kill it. He was able to find it and killed it. And, he knows me so well that he even left it out so I could see that he killed it because once he told me he killed a spider and he in fact did not kill said spider. So Evan, being the caring husband that he is, tried to play it off like that was the only roach we'd ever have and that he had seen it before but couldn't kill it so he was glad that we had finally gotten rid of it. Only, the rule of the insect world is, "Where there's one, there's hundreds"...or millions...or trillions! {shudder}

So as much as I tried to tell myself that it was the only roach we'd ever have, I knew that wasn't true. A few nights later Evan was asleep and I went into the kitchen to make a bottle for Blake. As I turned to my left, there it was...the biggest roach I had ever seen. We have hardwood floors that have lots of dark spots in them so I had to bend down a little just to make sure it wasn't just a spot on the floor. Due to the earlier roach incident, I decided wearing shoes at all times in the house was now a necessity. I would not be caught barefoot when I saw another roach only to have it escape. So it took about 30 seconds for me to muster the courage to kill the thing, which makes me think it may have been dead or on its way out of this world because what kind of roach just sits there for 30 seconds? Anyway, I smushed it with my shoe and ran into the bedroom crying and telling Evan I couldn't live here with roaches. He cleaned up the remains and apologized for making us live here.

For a while I was scared to go into the kitchen. I would stand in the doorway, surveying the floor so as not to be ambushed by any roaches. Then I would only spend enough time in the kitchen to make a bottle or heat something up. I researched online the best way to get rid of roaches and found out that boric acid as well as keeping things really clean is the best way to get them out of your life. My kitchen and bathroom are lined with boric acid (100% boric acid, not the sissy gel stuff.) I don't leave food out uncovered, I make sure the dishes are clean and put away before I go to bed, I vacuum the floor a few times a week, and try to keep things really clean. And it was working...until this morning. Evan killed a roach in the bathtub.

I've killed a few tiny ones in the bathroom. I can handle the tiny ones. Unfortunately the tiny ones turn into big ones. And it's the big ones that make me lose sleep at night. My downstairs neighbor told me that roaches are just a part of living in New York. I'm not sure I believe that they have to be. I know that no matter where we live we'll have to deal with some sort of pest, well, pestering us. I just deal a lot better with ants, or something small. Anyway, so I'll be vacuuming every night and trying to figure out how to rid myself of these disgusting creatures. Suggestions are welcome.


*I don't want anyone to think that we have roaches crawling all over. I've only actually seen 2 and killed 1. We are very clean people and have actually become more clean since moving to New York. I just think all bugs are disgusting and think it would be too soon if I never saw one again.

11 comments:

Stephanie said...

roach killer to roach killer:

it's alright, it doesnt mean you are dirty. you live in the city, and unfortunately, they run rampant there. Like here in Brazil. Our house is very clean (i know, i clean it) and i killed one last night. Do you spray for them? Did you call an exterminator? I hate them with a PASSION. I need to send you a pair of havaianas (the best brazilian flip flops ever) to wear around the house and kill them with.

Whitney said...

I haven't sprayed anything. I think I'll try to talk to our landlord and see if he'll get an exterminator because I don't want to pay for that. And I welcome anything that will kill roaches!

Nina @ Momma Go Round said...

OH girl I'd be freakin out too! Brian is afraid of spiders but I'm such a wuss I still make him kill them. We have tons of spiders here with that massive hill and park right by us.

AiringMyLaundry said...

Eek! I would FLIP out. We've never had a roach in the house but we have had lots of spiders. And moths. *Shudders*

Chelsea said...

Eeeee, so sorry! I would freak out too! I haven't had to deal with those, knock on wood. Just be careful what kind of pesticides you are using, some are not safe to use with Blake. A couple nasty bugs is better than poisoning your baby on accident! I'll keep my fingers crossed that they'll go to someone else's house and stop bothering you!

Whitney said...

Ya we do have to be especially careful of what we use with Blake. Hopefully they will go away!

rach said...

I lived in a place with richmond that was overrun with roaches and it grossed me out sooo bad. I thank god all the time that they do not exist in Ireland!!

Anyways I learned a few things in that experiance- first of all you see one and you can bet there are thousands. I'm sorry friend- this is the truth. Secondly roach spray is like trying to blow out an inferno by yourself. get an exterminator and spend one or two nights with a church friend or in a hotel. it is well worth your money not only for health reasons for your family but for your peace of mind.

Thirdly and most importantly- buy as much as you can prepackaged and airtight seal everything. They get into EVERYTHING. Buy yourself a lot of plastic food storage containers and keep cereal, all bags of food, anything that is opened in it. keep everything you can in the fridge. Keep things like potatoes and onions in the fridge. Wash any and all food cans, glasses, dishes, forks ect before you open, use them at all times. It will help I promise.

and good luck- it sucks and it drives you insane I know. I used to have roach nightmares a couple of times a week for months! The exterminator is SOOO worth your money. Talk to your landlord- maybe you could meet in the middle and both pay a little. Bring blake and look poor and sad! haha

Whitney said...

Bahahahaah look poor and sad! Love it! We do have pretty much everything in sealed containers. I'm going to look more into the exterminator. Thanks!

Emily said...

Don't be embarrassed. We all have them. Even the newest apartments. At least it's not bed bugs!!

Whitney said...

Ugh so true! There have been a few times when I saw something sitting on the curb that I thought I could use, then stopped myself because I'm afraid I'll bring more creatures into our apartment!

Lindsay said...

Cockroaches rank for me as one of the most awful insects in all of creation. Gah....ugh. They're just so...blech. We've been lucky and in the three years we've been here have only seen 3 big ones in our apartment. I attribute that both to my own cleanliness and that of my neighbors. Sometimes, no matter how much you scrub, if your neighbors don't scrub, you get them anyway. It's disgusting. But Emily's right...it's just part of life in the city. And at least it's not bed bugs. (Those might rank even higher on the Awful Scale than roaches do!)