by Debbie Walker

We live in Maine. We know we are going to have to deal with snow, ice and inconvenient road construction. I believe the most difficult of Maine life is the Black Flies and the Mosquitoes and “Oh My” is saying it lightly!

I tend to believe critters are each here for a purpose. So….. of course, I had to do some reading. This is what I found out about these critters

It is the female black flies we are upset with. The males feed on nectar. The females feed on mammals including us.

We know that mosquitoes need standing water to prosper, however, the black flies prefer running water. How do you folks who fish the streams stand it?! We know that from April to July the little nuisances make gardening, boating, camping and any other outdoor activity a nightmare. The one good thing is they don’t follow us into the house or tent, etc. Mosquitoes want us wherever we are!

There is even a song written by Wade Homsworth titled The Black Fly Song. I found the song on YouTube. It was written about Canada but I believe it applies to us as well. It tells about the Black Flies “picking our bones clean”.

I’ll bet woodsman didn’t have to worry about walking into the woods I’ll bet the black flies were more than willing to gang up and carry them in!

In reading various things on the internet I learned (and remember) the only state that doesn’t have black flies is Florida. Don’t get all carried away about how lucky they are in Florida because they have their curses too. They have the dreadful no see ums. You might not see them but you will certainly feel them and their after effects for days. They have fire ants. Horrible little suckers! They have Love Bugs; they don’t bite but will plaster your entire windshield if you do much traveling in May or September. Oh, and they will pit the paint on your vehicle!

Okay enough of that.

Mosquitoes: I probably can’t tell you much about those little suckers! There are several songs about them. Mosquito Song says “Swallow and chew, Eat you alive, All of us food that hasn’t died.” Truthful little song, I am surprised we didn’t learn it as kids!

Body odors entice the critters to you. Sweat, perfume, scents and the higher the body temperature the more likely the critters will find you.

Their only purpose, as I read, is to make more mosquitoes!

My friend, Otis, from Florida, when I was complaining about them, said “What are you complaining about, don’t you people saddle and ride your mosquitoes?” Oh yeah, he is a funny man!!

I read that camping is nature’s way of feeding mosquitoes. I haven’t been camping yet but I have fed a few anyway. But I will tell you that I got Ken to experiment for me. I gave him a couple of dryer sheets and said wear these and see if it works to ward off the bugs. According to Ken they seem to work. I haven’t tried them yet.

I am just curious but not about those critters and I don’t care what their purpose is anymore. I don’t want to deal with them! Contact me at dwdaffy@yahoo.com with questions or comments and thank you for reading!

by Debbie Walker

I believe IT has started. The IT is dirty politics for an upcoming election of one sort or another. I can’t even pay attention to what the election is for; I was just immediately put off by the nasty comments. I couldn’t even tell you what the comment was about. I have started a check list of the office and then the candidate and give “credit” where credit is due. If they all do it I guess there will be no one left.

There is history involved in the dirty politics, all levels I would guess. It didn’t start with Hilary and Trump, even though that continues to be a mess. I don’t have patience for any of it.

I do wish my history buff Dad was still alive. I would love to pick his brain on the subject. He’s not so I am relying on my attitude, a friend and The Farmer’s Almanac Special Edition, 2017 (https://www.farmersalmanac.com/crazy-president-elections-25625)

The article in The Farmer’s Almanac had to do with histories of presidential election: “Hair Splitting, Mud Slinging and Duels, Oh My.” I found an interesting word that I had to look up: “Mudraking.” I found it to be: “the action of searching out and publicizing scandalous information about famous people in an underhanded way.”

Mudracking. How do you feel about it? The link to the article is provided for you to possibly get your latest history lesson. The article talks about presidential elections that are one level. My recent upset was about a much lower level (just a term of definition) of the election system, but I liked the term muckraking.

I am sure you have the idea now. I don’t know about you but I am tired of it all. I find it a waste of my time. I am not likely to look at it as any kind of reliable information.

Candidates must pay for their commercial time. They use this time to talk trash? As a voter, I would rather hear what they think they can offer us as “responsible and credible” candidates. “They propose, support and create laws or policies that govern the land and by extension, it’s people” (Wikipedia).

I have been told that I am quite naive. I tend to look at things simply. I have never been a “game player” and I am too old to start now. I would like to hear the candidates’ own thoughts on what they can do for us and I doubt that I am alone on that one. The muckraking may be part of an excitement that some people enjoy. I’m not one of them, are you? This article was simply wrapped around my attitude, opinion and belief, and in no way represents this newspaper.

“When he took the job labeled responsible, he thought he had gotten the breaks; he wasn’t aware that it meant he’d be responsible for all mistakes,” by George O. Ludcke.

As always I am just curious how you feel about the whole process. Comments are welcome at dwdaffy@yahoo.com . Have a great week and thank you for reading.