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Post by isolated on Dec 19, 2008 10:07:23 GMT -5
About the bug issues. I do not know if you have tried this but I actually got this tip from an exterminator that was treating the apartment I used to live it many years ago. I can vouch for you that this actually works if you keep up with it.
The place was pretty infested to the point you could even hear them late at night and he told me to get a shop vac, place a bag inside, spray the bag down with with some spray and then go around and just vacuum those things up. Just make sure that once you are done playing assassin, that you seal the bag up very tightly and remove it from your house asap.
Word of warning, I hate sprays with a passion since they are bad for you, your kids,pets and the environment. Try to open some windows if you have to spray a lot, wrap your face with a t shirt or anything you can, move the animals outside or an area your not spraying, cover the fish tank, make the kids go outside etc...
I used to get so sick when I went on these eradication missions. My head would hurt, I would cough constantly and I even got dizzy and sometimes even tossed thy cookies.
The vacuum method works well since your just lightly coating your bag liner and it shows instant improvement unlike all other methods. You just cannot loose this way.
A few tips I've learned over the years that may help you.
Removing your pictures off of the walls.
Getting rid of cluttered areas.
Pulling items away from walls.
Keeping a shop vac on you at all times when clearing rooms. Checking the tops of your walls since they will run up there when clutter is removed.
It will not completely get rid of the problem but it will kill such a large amount that you will notice less, be a bit more comfortable in your place and will end up with the other treatment options working a little better.
When you live near open fields or have warm humid weather once an issues starts, it's sometimes very hard to control it. In S.Texas its pretty much known that everyone has a problem and no one is completely bug free. Just isn't possible here.
If I think of anything else, I will be sure to let you know.
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Post by messyang on Dec 20, 2008 11:36:26 GMT -5
That is some good advice, and you sound like someone who understands. I have vacuumed up the roaches, but believe it or not, many of them survive the sucking up process! The photos on the wall DO collect bugs, you are SO right. Also, I have literally gagged and had to go outside to get fresh air while spraying!!! Thank God someone understands. Bugs like roaches are so hard to get rid of , and I have tried so hard!!! Anyone who saw my house would never understand how hard I have tried, and if I had the money in one hand right now that I have spent for sprays, baits, and other stuff, I would have a darn good Christmas!
I had a very hard day yesterday. I had taken pictures to be developed to the drug store and I wept when I saw how fat I looked in the pictures. As I sat in the car weeping, a roach came up over the dash board, and I began to cry harder, realizing I had no where to go but home. All I could think about was the dirty dishes piled up, trash on the floor, and cat poop on the carpet. Lord help me...I am losing control.
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Post by creativechaos on Dec 24, 2008 21:44:02 GMT -5
oh messyang, you know how pictures can be; they always make us look heavier. i hate photos of myself at any weight.
this is such a hard situation. i wish you had help with this. someone non- judgmental and cheerful, ready to help you move and haul and battle roaches side by side.
anyone: do those high-frequency thingies get rid of roaches? and do they hurt fish and other pets? just trying to think of some more solutions.
messyang, keep posting. tell us how you're doing? we want to be there with you every step of the way.
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Post by zinnia on Dec 24, 2008 23:01:23 GMT -5
Anyone who saw my house would never understand how hard I have tried.... I think everyone here would know you are really trying. Hugs to you. |
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Post by dayeanu on Dec 28, 2008 9:40:41 GMT -5
Hi. Welcome! I just now read this entire thread. I had a thought about the roaches. Since you live in the woods, could you have ducks/geese/chickens outside? I have poultry outside, and they eat a huge quantity of bugs, before they can enter my house. I keep the big Rouen ducks. (They don't fly off, they are especially good at eating flying insects, their eggs are excellent for eating, like a chicken egg but better, and are esp. sought after by chefs for baking). And the big white Embden geese. They will keep your yard mowed, eat snakes and bugs. And I keep a variety of chickens. They eat a lot of bugs and of course lay eggs. None of these critters are expensive to feed. Where you and I live, there is enough vegetation and bugs to just turn them loose, free-range, year round, and they will feed themselves. I put out scraps that the other animals won't eat, and throw out a hand-ful of grain every day and call them to me just to keep them tame. AND you can sell the free-range, organic eggs for a good bit. (More than the store-bought, chemically inundated eggs laid by chickens living in cruel and inhumane conditions.) This could be a great project for your kids. They could build a little coop to close them up in at night, to keep them safe from predators. And they could sell eggs. It might be a good project for them to direct some energy into. My grandson has done a 4-H poultry project for several years in a row. Since he was 9. 4-H gives him 25 baby chickens, free, he raises them, gives 5 back to them to continue the program, and he keeps 20.) He sells brown eggs, and occasionally a laying hen. He also does a little program where he tells groups of kids about his poultry, lets them pet them, and answers questions. He loves it, and the kids love it. He is 13.
The poultry could provide you with eggs, a little income, a project for the kids, and help with bug control. Inexpensive, low maintenance, entertaining. I just love to watch them. Relaxing, sort of like having an aquarium.
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messymac
New Member
Joined: December 2008
Posts: 11
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Post by messymac on Dec 28, 2008 18:19:37 GMT -5
messyang --
My heart hurts for you -- you must feel as if you are in an impossible situation. You are not -- by reaching out to forums like this you you confirm you are NOT alone, and it is not hopeless.
It's clear you love your kids -- that's your priority.
Do the timing 'games' every work for you? 10 minutes here or there?
I'm going to go do 10 minutes in the living room. While I am doing it, I'll remember this thread, and send you thoughts about forgiving yourself for things that, well, really need no forgiveness. You have had to handle more than anyone could.
The fact that your family is still in tact is a victory (that you are not in a padded cell, or didn't turn to drugs, etc., is something you should give yourself credit for). Teens are hard in any circumstances (I have taught my middle son not to throw the suit he wearts to court on the floor.....).
I have often used a phrase on a placque I saw years ago in a counselor's office (youngest son--16-- has been in counseling since he was 5 or six). It said "Children need love most when they deserve it the least." I realized just today -- that can be said about parents, too.
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nomore
New Member
Joined: December 2008
Posts: 5
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Post by nomore on Dec 29, 2008 13:44:50 GMT -5
Angie, my heart goes out to in reading your story. Life can be so hard sometimes and we feel like giving up. I mean what I'm about to say in the nicest way, but in reading your post, I saw many thing like "I can't" or "wont happen". Your life is only over if you give up on it. I know you might feel tempted to do so. But remember there are others in similiar situations who have overcome. You are here, because you want to change. That's the first step, a desire to change. But along with that desire you must have faith that you CAN change. Otheres in similiar circumstances have done it, so there is no reason you cant also, just believe and begin . You wont change things overnight but one step at a time and you will surprise yourself where you will be in a short time.
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Blackswan
Banned
Joined: October 2008
Posts: 6,388
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Post by Blackswan on Dec 29, 2008 16:33:10 GMT -5
Hi, i just read this whole thread for the first time too. I am also a very overweight, depressed teacher struggling with cockroaches and raising a boy without a father (only one for me though). I hope that winter break treats you well, and I hope that things start to get better for you soon.
HUGS
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Post by dayeanu on Dec 29, 2008 19:02:25 GMT -5
Your life is only over if you give up on it. I know you might feel tempted to do so. But remember there are others in similar situations who have overcome. You are here, because you want to change. That's the first step, a desire to change. But along with that desire you must have faith that you CAN change. Others in similar circumstances have done it, so there is no reason you cant also, just believe and begin . You wont change things overnight but one step at a time and you will surprise yourself where you will be in a short time. Well said. |
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