Copulating cockroaches

As if the creatures weren't disgusting enough individually, yesterday I discovered a pair 'doing the dirty' on my kitchen counter. Ugh! Double ugh!!

They were so thoroughly engrossed in the procedure that I had to practically drown them in Raid before they disentangled and fell to the floor, writhing in what I hope was extreme and excruciating agony before dying. Triple ugh!!!


You know, I grew up in the far north where, of course, I'd heard of cockroaches but had never seen one. I had always heard that they primarily 'resided' in dirty places and apartment buildings. I guess that's true. (?)


Well, down here in 'God's country', Texas, there exists a creature approaching 2" in length (I kid you not) that the locals call a 'tree roach'. [The first time Dad saw one, he exclaimed, "Look at the size of that beetle!"] And, as one might assume from the moniker, they are usually found outside.


I was telling my daughter yesterday that I intended to publish a post titled "Copulating cockroaches", and she said, "You're not!?!" I responded, "Yes, I am", and our conversation went on from there to include some of each of our previous experiences with these overgrown 'beetles' of the south.


She recalled a time when she was sleeping on a cot in her daddy's temporary apartment in New Orleans and a cockroach crawled over her face. Quadruple ugh!!!!

Have you ever had one of these monsters on you? I have, a time or two, but they generally run as fast as they can away from me, because I am Goldenrod, the mighty roach killer who ALWAYS has a can of Raid handy!

The feeling is quite similar to that of a feather, actually.


As large as the tree roaches are in Houston, however, in New Orleans they're even bigger, if you can imagine such a thing. Not only that, they fly at you! Quintuple ugh!!!!!


In New Orleans, we had a home that featured a VERY large family/activity-type room. We purchased a pool table, and DD (Does everyone remember who 'DD' is?? DD is 'Darling Daughter'.) yesterday told me of a time when one of the NO cockroaches was chasing her through the family room. (?) She jumped up on the pool table and the cockroach flew up after her!

I asked, "What happened next?" She said, "I don't remember." (?) You know what? I think she was remembering a bad dream that ended when she woke up, that's what I think!


She used a phrase that I'd like to share with you ... "shuddering herself into jello" ... is that descriptive, or what??


Anyway, I shuddered to think of these disgusting creatures trying to multiply in my very own kitchen. Enough, already!