Mosquitos, Cockroaches, and Sewage, Oh My!

I know it's been a while. The reason for that is multiplefold (I know that's not really a word). First, we got our household shipment (No, we still have not gotten our car), so I've been unpacking our stuff and trying to find a place for everything, especially in my kitchen. I probably have about one-fourth as many cupboards as I did in San Diego, so I've had to get creative! Second, honestly I've been depressed - and I didn't want to write about that. To give you a brief overview, there is a culture shock curve. It lasts about six months. In the beginning it is the honeymoon phase, next is the; This place must be Hades phase (which is where I was at), next is the climb out phase (which is where I am now), and at about six months you are thoroughly enjoying your new home (which I am anxiously awaiting). Third, I have been busy with some of the things you will learn about later in this post (which contributed to the Hades phase).

So, to go on to our post for today, I thought it was totally appropriate because tomorrow is Halloween, and things right now in Argentina are a little Halloweeny. Not in the fun, candy, party, way, because they don't celebrate Halloween here, but in the creepy, crawly, nasty way.

First, I am posting a picture of my house. It is just the outside, because it is just the outside that goes with this post. Why? You might ask. Because we live in what looks like a Haunted House!

The black gates with pointed tips, the black pitched roof, and the black bars on the windows all make it a perfect Haunted House. You can get a better view of the sharp angles from the back of the house here:

To compliment the atmosphere, we've had a few issues, as mentioned in the title of this post. First, we'll talk about these:

Cockroaches! Of all the places I've lived, I've never dealt with these before. So when I first unpacked my kitchen, I made sure all of the cupboards and drawers were clean. After a few days, I noticed what looked like little poppyseeds in some of the cupboards, and I wasn't sure why. Then one night when Taelor went down to get a drink of water, we heard a scream!! We ran down, and with tears in her eyes, she screamed, "A cockroach! Aaaaaah!"

After googling cockroaches, we learned that if you see one, there are more. I also learned those little poppyseed things, were actually cockroach poop. Super awesome! So after a little jaunt to the store to buy some roach hotels, we now see poison drunk cockroaches walking out of the cupboards on their way to die! That really is super awesome! I don't even mind the crunch when I step on their nasty bodies because I want them to die!

On to the next issue, I don't have a picture for this one because it's not really about the picture, it's about the smell. A week or two after we had been in the house, we had an issue. The sewer backed up into our garage. Again, super awesome! We quickly bleach-mopped the garage as we moved the shelves, dryer, refrigerator, etc. Lucky for us, it happened two more times! Let me just tell you, the smell alone may have been the thing that made the cockroaches drunk!

And last, but not least, the mosquitos are nasty. We are in springtime right now, so I am absolutely and completely terrified for what happens when all the eggs hatch and the mosquitos come in full force. I do have a picture for this one. Lance got bit right next to his eye, and this is the result:

Lance seems to have a much bigger reaction than the rest of us to the mosquitos here, including swelling, and sometimes blisters and puss. I wish I could say we were safe in our house, but the mosquitos wait at the door and come in when you do. The other morning, Mike killed about 20 of them in our kitchen.

For now, I think I've scared you all enough! Say your prayers that tomorrow on Halloween, you won't wake up into my nightmare!!!


Disclaimer: I make it sound all awful, but it's not really. But I can only talk about the scary stuff on my Halloween post!

Until next time, Adios!