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Yesterday was Exterminator Day -- huzzah -- though there's still a lot of the circus to go, but the end of the bed bug mess is in sight. I had to leave the apartment for four hours, but it was nice to get back.
There were a couple of hiccups. The first is that the exterminator never told me I had to clean out all the drawers and shelves in my bedroom and living room. I'd asked him previously what I had to do to prepare, but he never mentioned it. Slight oversight... He said it wasn't a problem, since he comes back to more times, 20 days apart, and I can just do it before the next visit. The apartment will be an even bigger mess than it is now -- I washed my entire wardrobe and put it in plastic bags, but I'm not supposed to put it all back until he's finally finished, only take out the things I most need. So the place is filled with plastic bags covering the floor. And then since I have to empty all my drawers (including my file cabinet), I figure I might as well leave all that out, too, rather than put it back and take it out again before the third visit. So...I'm going to be living in a war zone for a while... The other issue was that the two guys who came over took my sofa and bed out, to throw in the trash. It was nice of them -- I offered to help, but they said no. Except the thing is, I live on the second floor of an apartment complex, and the guy just dumped the sofa over the railing, and went down to get it. The neighbor in the place below was not exactly happy -- angry is a better term. He tracked me down, upset that this could have knocked out the bugs and that they could get into his apartment. He's right to be angry -- but he was blaming me. We have a bad relationship to begin with, so this didn't help. But seriously...my fault??? Sigh. Mind you, I'm not sure if bed bugs get knocked out of a sofa that easily. They're tough critters who hold on pretty tight, and even if some do, there's certainly no guarantee that they'll get into any of the apartments. I certainly hope not. For a lot of reasons. Anyway, the saga continues, but it's nice to be in a (reasonably, I hope) bug-free environment. And so, we plod on.
2 Comments
Arlene Paige
1/17/2014 11:26:29 am
Bedbugs got right next door to me! Right next door! My place was exterminated as a precaution. They're supposed to do both sides of a contaminated apartment, and above and below as far as I know. But I got my back up and only had to do minor preparation, which worked out fine. I almost moved out, though. I had an apartment picked out and the whole thing, but I calmed down when the extermination inconvenience was sort of minor and it came to nothing. Panic didn't cost me any money, so it was all OK. Exterminators can use heat also. You have to stay out of the apartment for about 3 days I think, and they do it all at once, as they did mine in one day. I hope it's all over for you soon and that the bugs didn't run right underneath you, though they might have run there already. It's par for their course and should at least be checked soon. Your neighbor was right to be concerned. Good luck, Robert. :-(
Robert Elisberg
1/18/2014 12:03:35 am
My neighbor was right to be concerned about them dropping the sofa. He was not right to be angry at me. That was the point. Leave a Reply. |
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AuthorRobert J. Elisberg is a political commentator, screenwriter, novelist, tech writer and also some other things that I just tend to keep forgetting.    
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