We have a little problem around my house with gnats. Last summer they seemed to be everywhere and this summer it is even worse. I don’t know if they are coming from the neighbor’s backyard pool that slightly resembles a swampy pond or if they are coming from the tank on our back porch that houses our pet turtle, Greenleaf. I’m sure they find their way in because the children have a very bad habit of leaving the doors wide open for extended periods of time. They sometimes forget completely to pull the door closed behind them, leaving clear a path for every flying creature to make himself at home. And they have. Whatever the source and whoever is to blame, the gnats are driving me crazy flying all over my house. Last summer, in total exasperation, I announced that I would pay the children a nickel for every gnat they killed. I had to see the dead bug before I would pay up, but I was willing to do anything to rid my house of the pests. My boys loved this idea and became expert gnat hunters, coming to me every few minutes with the corpses of the unsuspecting little suckers on the ends of their fingers or smashed beyond recognition on the palms of their hands. I quickly exhausted my supply of nickels. In fact, I have yet to recover financially from the abundant gnat hunting season of last summer. Yet, they are back in even greater numbers this year. So, in desperation, I offered to pay for the gnats this year with candy. I found a leftover bag of valentine hearts in the back of the cupboard and offered one heart per bug. Again the kids set off with a vengeance, eager to slay the tiny winged dragons. The boys are excellent at their craft. In fact, I have gotten so sick of having a dead gnat shoved in my face every few minutes that we had to come up with a better way to keep track. So, it has now become commonplace in my house to find Kleenex lined up on the kitchen counter, covered in the bodies of the little gnat victims, awaiting counting so that their killers can be proper compensated.
The battle continues to rage. Yesterday, I ran out of candy. The bugs seemed to have won the war. Then, out of the blue, my neighbor came over today with a three pound bin of candy. She explained that her husband had brought home several of the bins and they wanted to share with us. “We are back in business,” I told the boys and off they went to earn more candy. I’m not sure who will ultimately triumph, the bugs or the boys but I am pretty sure the dentist will benefit the most from the great summer gnat crusade. And, in the meantime, I am left to wonder, does anyone else have as crazy a life as me?!!??!
Last summer and the summer before we had a huge gnat problem in the house. We put up fly paper that I was able to buy for cheap (4 for a $1) or something like that. It help trap them and kill them. Especially if hung in an area where there are a lot of them. We still have gnats out in the yard swarming here and there, but at lest they aren't in the house. A few here or there maybe, but not enough for me to be bugged by it.
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