Toenail clippings and mosquitoes

Neither of these are particularly pleasant things, are they? Let's deal with the toenail issue first. I've blogged before about aspects of domestic drudgery that I detest slightly more than others, and here is another for the list. Imagine me cleaning my bathroom, humming gently to myself, enjoying the warm glow I get from restoring a previously rather dirty room to one of gleaming, Hilton-like cleanliness. I spy a small pile of... what could it be? I peer at it more closely. It is a neatly-stacked pile of toenail clippings. Ugh! Well, they're not mine, so that only leaves four other potential culprits. Actually I don't really care who they belong to. I just don't want it to happen again.

And now for the mosquitoes. We all know that they have their uses - at least if you are a winged mammal with long ears or perhaps an amphibian - or even a large, crafty spider. We know they are an important part of the food chain (that's primary school brain-washing for you) and we hate them nonetheless. Especially the ones who are still hanging around as we edge into mid-November, naively presuming that we don't need to worry about them any more. These doggedly persistent types are also hungry. They know their days are numbered, so when they see their chance, they'll grab as much blood as they can. I know, because we've had one camping out in our bedroom for the last three nights. We have yet to locate him, so tonight will see me sporting long-sleeved pyjamas and gloves, and quite possibly a balaclava, if that's what it takes.