The man in the mosquito-spray truck caught me this evening at dusk. Thank goodness I was just finishing up my walk and was near my house. Usually, he will turn off the spray as he passes me, but tonight, he did not. "They" say the chemical is not harmful to humans and animals, but who the hell knows, except that our back yard feeder still attracts large numbers of birds. The birds are kind of a test, you know, like the canary in the coal mine.
Why is Mr Spray Man spraying on a Saturday night? I thought I was safe, because it was Saturday, and it wasn't even dark yet. I have to admit that the mosquitoes would be fierce around here without the spray, because we've had a lot of rain. Yesterday, it rained all day, and I was out with my umbrella several times for Diana to pee. As soon as the weather clouds up, she wants in the house, but once I had her out on the lead, she was straining to go for a walk. Sorry, girl, I don't think so.
Such is life in a smallish town in south Louisiana.
Photo from Boston.com where I just noticed that the picture bears the caption: "An East Middlesex mosquito truck sprays on Bedford's McIntosh Road, not far from a US wildlife refuge that bans the practice." Yikes! The entire article is about the controversy over spraying in East Middlesex, Massachusetts. And the spray may be harmful to bees, which is not good at all. Oh dear!
On the other hand, we have cases of West Nile fever in Louisiana, though not yet in my area. Hmm.
