I never thought seriously about vacationing in the South let alone living here.
Yet, this is where a good career opportunity presented itself for my husband, thus we moved to the “gateway of the deep South.”
There are many things I LOVE about living in the South: sweet tea, very friendly people, great southern hospitality, not shoveling snow, great bbq, great locally owned restaurants, milder temperatures in the winter, seeing armadillos, wonderful scenery, closer beaches, close to major cities and attractions, and many more. Of all of them, the friendliness of the people is the best. I was reminded of just how nice people are here when I traveled north recently.
However, there are a few things I REALLY do not like about living in the South: excessive heat, excessive humidity, too many bugs, lack of good German food, having armadillos (turns out they carry rabies, salmonella and leprosy), adequate snow to play in (yeah, I know I’m contradictory), can’t find some of the foods I like, and a few more. Of all of them, the bugs are the worst by far. I am tired of constantly fighting invasions of ants , spiders, and other creatures.
Ants Climbing Deck Post
Today was by far the worst. I FOUND A SCORPION IN MY KITCHEN SINK!
At first glance, I mistook it for a wasp because of its color. It did not take me long to realize that it was one of my worst fears about moving here, a scorpion.
Sure, I knew they were here in theory, but really? People are constantly commenting on the ants (regular usually not fire ants), spiders, some weird roaches, mosquitoes, and bees. However, scorpions are never mentioned.
I panicked. I got my child and the dog out of the kitchen, and called my husband. He asked if it was somewhere I could get it and put it in a container. Oh great. . . I am scared of everything involving a bug, rodent, or snake, and he wanted me to capture it.
I sucked it up. Using a long, rectangular plastic container and its lid, I scooped up the scorpion and the cleaning sponge it was sitting on. I was so thankful that I had left the sponge in the sink and that it had climbed on it. Once in the container, I put on the lid making sure it sealed tight.
Scorpion inside plastic container a couple of hours after capture
In container, picture not a clear but looks more like scorpion
I put the sealed container on the patio. My husband was all excited that I managed to capture it. He has never seen one outside of a zoo or somewhere similar and can’t wait to see it when he gets home tonight.
My reaction was very different. I just wanted to move back north. But then again, I would have to give up the friendly people, the great bbq, . . .
If you have a black light, you should fish it out. Scorpions are fluorescent; its pretty cool.
Thank you for the nice compliment.
Thank you. I am glad you enjoy reading it!