Saturday, January 4, 2014

Man against the mosquito


I am a man against the mosquitoes here in Dhaka. While malaria has been fully eradicated from the city, there aren't many diseases you can get from mosquitoes, but they are still awfully annoying and can make you sick.
Apparently during the dry season (which is now), mosquitoes do all their reproducing and a lot of their biting. Even though mosquitoes typically would thrive with an excess of water (as they lay their eggs on standing water), because there is SO much water here in Bangladesh all the time, they actually wait and do most of their breeding when it's drier, since there is still enough water, but without the rain to disrupt the standing water and wash their eggs away. Consequently, I have found myself locked in a heated battle against them and have equipped myself with an impressive arsenal to defend myself against the vile creatures.
Exhibit A: mosquito netting over the bed (you are most vulnerable when you are sleeping and they prey on any opportunity to feed when they will be least disturbed by hands swatting them away)


Exhibits B-G: so this is the battery of assault weapons that I have to ward off the horrible creatures. I have the traditional coils that slowly burn (like incense) that go outside and emit an odor that they don't like. There are plug in versions that are safe for rooms where humans are. Then there are the sprays: there's DEET, prallethrin and allethrin. And then, finally, there is the final weapon: the made in China electric swatter. These are my weapons but I can't say that I win all the time. These bastards are clever and they taunt me with a buzz in my ear or the dreaded prick on the arm or neck. This is war, mosquitoes!


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