So, here we go yet again. Word came to me today that a vacating tenant on the floor below me left behind a massive infestation of bed bugs.

As a precaution, that entire floor is being sprayed - along with the ones immediately above and below it.

So once again it's time to break my back prepping for a legalized home invasion, complete with chemical weapons. The de-critterizer guy arrives on Tuesday the 13th. (I'm just thankful it's not Friday the 13th - I don't know if I could handle that right now).

I've been noticing a few of these carnivorous refugees in my place again as of late, although nothing like my ordeal of June '07. My resident cockroach colony survived essentially unscathed following the December '07 spraying campaign, although recently I've been waging a moderately successful war of attrition utilizing strategically placed strips of masking tape (think flypaper, only a lot cheaper. Dollarama sells the stuff for a buck a roll).

I've also noticed a small colony of long-legged spiders (perhaps a dozen) that has established itself on the ceiling in my bathroom. These critters are peaceful and have proved to be valuable allies in keeping the roach population in check, so I'm content to leave them where they are for the time being. I just hope the upcoming spraying campaign spares them! (See attached photo)

Oh, how I long for the good old days when a dollar's worth of garlic would solve the worst vampire problem. This new breed, for all its diminutive size, leaves Dracula and his buddies in the shade when it comes to expansionism, tenacity and sheer toughness.

Sunlight does jack-shit to a bloodsucker that sleeps its days away in the baseboard cracks and the other old standbys (crosses, wooden stakes and silver) are equally irrelevant in this situation.

Laundry and purging the ol' clothes closet will be the biggies this time. I need to harden my packrat's heart and engage in a ruthless reduction of long-unworn articles of apparel that are clogging my closet and providing ideal habitat for the beasties. (Note to myself: try to obtain a locker for those bigger items such as camping equipment that I simply cannot bear to part with).

Happy fucking New Year. Hallelujah, world without end, amen. (Note the sarcasm dripping from the latter).