Ticks

If it looks like a tick, it is probably not a mole. I have more experience with ticks than I would care to have. Summertime walks in South Georgia along paths lined with tall grass occassionally resulted in a tick or two hitching a ride. Those I'd fling back into the grass. There, the parasites would wait knowing I would eventually return only to fling them once again. Yes, I shuddered as I flung them. But flinging a tick is better than feeding one. The tick I recall best is one I found latched to the middle of my back. It was after midnight. I was checking into my second hotel of the evening--the first having given me the "smoking room," saying that is what I reserved. The desk clerk knew, and I knew, I was getting the smoking room because I'd checked in at nearly midnight and they didn't think they would have to honor my guaranteed reservation. Shame on you, Country Inn near the Omaha airport. But, back to ticks. I was already feeling sorry for myself with the hotel change. The tick almost sent me over the edge. Do I go to the front desk and beg some overnight shift clerk to pull it off? Certainly it wasn't to remain bound to me for the night. Not wanting to test the clerk, I somehow managed enough weird contortions to dislodge it. Unfortunately, I don't know where the tick went. My bet, a few nights later a guest filled out a complaint card about finding ticks. At that point, not my problem. And I slept fine. I've also removed ticks from Girl Scouts and, one time, 40-plus ticks from a dog. So I was disappointed and a bit grossed out to discover Flonotes picked up two ticks as followers. One is fairly benign as far as ticks go. Her follower icon looks like a crab and it seems that she "follows" hundreds of blogs to get her crab logo displayed, generate interest and sell her art. If her art looks like her follower icon, I'm thinking the public health clinics are her natural market. My other tick is the kind that I hate to think will move on to be someone else's problem. He is a racist hatemonger. If he were the tick on my back, I would have carved loose a huge chunk of flesh to be rid of him. If he were a tick in the grass, I would have burned the field. I hate to imagine a tick like this near Girl Scouts, dogs or anyone I care for. So, I've made a few changes. No more blog followers. It is too easy for one follower to contact another. Also, I see any comments before they are posted. I haven't had many comments, but this way I know hatemongers and their friends can't get any farther than my words. Keeping reading. I'm tick free.