Thursday, October 20, 2005

Please! MAKE IT STOP!

So, as stated in several posts, I work at an insect farm. Crickets to be more exact. I work in the office so I normally don't have much contact with the actual bugs. Occasionally, we'll get one or two that sneaks in and starts making noise, but it is quickly tracked down and thrown out the back door. Until recently. This past week the noise has been nearly intolerable. I HATE the sound of crickets. The incessant chirping is like nails on a chalk board to me.

Somehow, we have hundreds in the office. Apparently all adults because they are calling to each other from one corner to another. They hang out on warm spots, like the power supplies for our computers, printers, etc. Out of desperation, I just spent 25 minutes with a dust buster trying to vacuum the ones I could reach. Then I sprayed Lysol in their hiding spots. I normally try to avoid stepping on them at all costs (the snap they make as your shoe crushes them is quite disturbing), but today I have been stomping on them whenever they dare to brave the open carpet.

It is a bit quieter now. Only a handful are chirping. Hopefully, they won't work up to the dull roar they were sustaining a half hour ago.

2:00 Update: So, the Lysol and vacuuming created only a temporary repreve. They are back to chirping at nearly full volume and I am stomping on any that come out of hiding. Glad I only work 3 days a week!! We need weather stripping flaps on the doors to the office to keep them from having free access in - I have suggested this to the office manager this afternoon... We'll see...