Beneath the Wraps

         I have always hated flies.   Annoying creatures that buzz around my face and land their teeny legs on my skin to share their germs.   My idea of hell consists of non-dying flies.          Mosquitos never bothered me quite so much when I was single.   They loved my brother, Patrick.   I could stand next to him anytime the mosquitos were out and never be bitten.   He could even be doused in an entire can of repellent and I with nothing, and the mosquitos would still go after him.   I had actually convinced myself that mosquitos actually died on my blood.          During the last five years or so, my blood must have improved in taste – or else the mosquitos are just getting more desperate.   I know the Red Cross is.   They had also taken my blood out of desperation.   It’s never been wonderful bloo...

           I remember seeing Magpies when I was younger.   Occasionally I would notice one or two – never an entire flock!   I thought they were a very interesting and beautiful bird.   I didn’t know that magpies are dirty birds with thieving habits.   I still don’t know much about them.              They must have flown here from Colorado as I have seen more magpies this year than in the first fifty combined. I now feel the same annoyance toward them that I feel toward mosquitoes. If the Magpies would just leave our gardens alone and go after the mosquitoes, Jenna and I would be willing to call the Magpies our friends.             Poor Jenna.   She’s received four to six times as many bug bites as I have.   Her blood must be succulent like Patrick’s.   No matter how many precautions ...

I rarely ever have the covers on when I’m asleep – regardless of the season.   Roland is the opposite.   He is usually all bundled up.   When I see him without blankets, I know it is hot. The weather on Friday was so awesome!   It looked like summer outside, but it felt like fall.               The grass is dry.   Our grass is always dry.   I worry about it each year there have been fires, and spend more time trying to douse our lawn with moisture.             I recall going camping when I was younger.   The weather in the mountains is a lot cooler than the city. I remember one year when we went with the neighbors across the street.   Their youngest boy was less than a year.   The mosquitoes would attack him along with my brother Patrick, has always had delicious blood.   The center contacts him every other mo...