The Bug House

Well, as much as we love this old house, the bug season is upon us with its annual challenges as we face off with THE BUGS. Let's start with the mosquitoes -- kept at bay by cool temperatures in the spring, they spring to life with the coming of the rainy season and make outdoor life miserable till about the end of September. We go through mosquito coils like potato chips at a barbeque!

Then there are the spiders, that grow large and fast probably on all the protein they are consuming when they eat unseen cockroaches and cockroach larvae... We actually just shoo the spiders away when they appear. Spiders are our friends (as long as they aren't TOO large and hairy!). Of course the dreaded MUKADE (moo kah day) aka centipedes have made their appearance, occasionally dropping from the ceiling, which causes some excitement amongst the occupants of this house ("Quick!! Get the tongs!!).

Those are all perennial annoyances in this 80-year-old house, but 2 weeks ago we discovered a new one ... termites!! Oh yes, they like this house, too. Fortunately they like just a small area of this house -- the termite exterminators were here and found they are confined to a dark, dampish area under the floor of the tea ceremony preparation room, where they have lived and flourished undetected for some time, apparently. It has been an opportunity for Phil to go exploring under the house:

We have pulled out the affected tatami mats and lumber,
and are now in the process of repairing the damage. Not the way we WANT to spend our weekends, but we are mindful that summer vacation is coming soon. We are also averse to the idea of creepy crawlies munching away at the house while we sleep or are away on vacation, so are keen to get it dealt with as soon as possible.

We'll let you know how it all turns out!