Well, it turns out there isn’t any trapping. Just killing and general shooing-away. But, this isn’t over. Not by a long shot.

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Ohio, and particularly MY house is being infested with stink bugs. Each afternoon, I become a prisoner in my own home because there are swarms of them outside. They are everywhere and I’m tired of it. It is SO on.

In the past four hours, I’ve killed about 100 with the hot, soapy water technique. I’ll share the results of the towel and trap tomorrow. One flew in my hair, so I’m not going back out there tonight other than to set the trap. *shudder*

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What can I say? Melisa came to town and I didn’t blog for a week. Mostly because I had to entertain her. She’s exceptionally needy – if “needy” = comes in with beer, gummy bears and clown noses, makes me laugh, pulls me away from my computer, encourages me to go for long walks in the sunshine, eat good food, and explore parts of my own town I never see.

Melisa first came to see me in 2009 and it’s been a long time coming, but I would like to thank whomever left that freezer door ajar.

There is something to be said for a friend who can come into your house and fit into the family so seamlessly that by the third day you accidentally call her, “Honey” and halfway mean it.

At least there will still be a piece of her here with us after she leaves.

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I am an extrovert. I know, I know, try to control your shock.

This morning I was thinking about how much I want to fulfill my dream of driving cross-country in an RV with seven other people. Why seven others? You need eight so you can stop at campgrounds and have euchre tournaments. Also, if you have a big group it means you are less likely to be the one attacked by a bear.

I want to pack board games, coolers full of beer and delicious food, good music, lawn chairs and sleeping bags. I want to canoe down the Colorado River, drive up the coast of California, and stop – I don’t know where – to get one of those Wall Drug bumper stickers, because I think that’s mandatory for cross-country roadtrippers.

And, I want to drag a group of people along with me.

I find comfort and safety in numbers. I like having someone to talk to, and if you want to talk and I don’t there are plenty of other people around who can listen to you. This is not me being rude, this is me being sensible.

Also, I will inevitably get injured and the group would be able to take turns caring for me so that the trip isn’t ruined for everyone all at once You’re welcome. Laughs! Memories! Concussions!

I want this trip so bad that I told my 14 year old daughter to fulfill the dream for me if something happens and I can’t do it. She’s an introvert, so it’s pretty much her dream too. Anyway, I think introversion can be remedied with a lot of chocolate, so I’m doing her a favor. I’m not saying that introverts need to be “remedied” though, because that would be rude.

Some people may think I’m crazy and other than the three people in my family who would be forced to join me, I may be hard-pressed to find four other people who would enjoy singing camp songs somewhere on the back roads of Oklahoma. Actually, we’d probably do musical theater, because Oklahoma. Duh.

So, if someday you see me traveling down the highway with eight people and a dog in a crowded RV, give me a thumbs up, because it’s exactly where I want to be. In the meantime, I’ll be sitting here all alone planning the trip.

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