The Lovebugs Are Back and I'm Already Done With Them

Orlando, FL - For the love of God… may someone please tell me how to deal with the annoying creatures that are invading my house? No, I don’t mean my children. I am talking about the lovebugs. Yes, they are back, and they continue to be as annoying as ever.

For those of you who are, like me, new to Florida, let me tell you about the lovebugs.

According to the Florida Pest Control Website, lovebugs are relatively small black insects with a red to reddish-brown color highlighting the back of the thorax (upper body). Scientifically named Plecia nearctica, they do not bite or sting people, animals or other insects. As larvae, they feed on decaying plants; as adults, they feed on nectar. The adults generally live for only a few days.

I know, I know… why, if they are such harmless little guys, people hate them so much? Well, let me tell you why… because they are really, really annoying.

For the past week, I have been dealing (and when I say dealing I actually mean fighting) with them. They are not only all over my car, but some of them have even decided to camp at my porch waiting for me to open the front door so they can let themselves in without the proper invitation. I am telling you… they are something else. So annoying!

The other day, I was coming home from a nice walk around my neighborhood, in which I, not only had to fight with millions of them during the entire walk, but also had to make a point of keeping my mouth closed because, for some weird reason, some of them wanted to get in it, just to find myself having to cough one up (well, two) because they decided that they were going to take advantage of me saying hello to my neighbor to make their way into my throat. Have I convinced you yet on how annoying they are?

Let me tell you.. they are so annoying that even a family visiting Florida this past week had to sue Disney because they were bitten by them. Oh wait, my apologies, those were not the lovebugs… those were bed bugs. Well, same difference. A bug is a bug and, as far as I know, Florida has a lot of them. I wish someone had warned me about them before we moved here.

Anyway… let me go and deal with the annoying creatures. No, sorry, this time I am not talking about the lovebugs, or the bed bugs. This time, I am actually talking about the biggest bugs in my life… my children. I love them to death but they are also so annoying.

Author: Marielys Camacho-Reyes, MS is a U.S. Army Veteran, a military spouse, a freelance writer, and the author of the book Cleaning Out My Closet: My Road from Self-Discovery to Emotional Healing. You can visit her website at www.mcreyes.com for more of her pieces.