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| Notice the little webby connection suspending the oatmeal in the upper right hand corner of the bag? I kept this oatmeal package sealed, from store… to trash. |
Expecting and experiencing are different.
We expected critter invasions of our foodstuffs at some point, but experiencingthe invasions each time was a surprise.
Invasion #1: Spicy Surprise?
We’d lived on our boat a few months when little moths began greeting us in a flurry of flight each time we opened our food storage cabinets. Eventually I traced their incubator to a brand new bottle of paprika. It was hardly what I’d expect moths to choose for their crucible of life. I hastily discarded the bottle.
Boomerang from Invasion #1?
We are currently experiencing what I believe is the second, smaller wave of their gestation. I’m betting this time the survivors laid eggs into the cabinetry woodwork, as I’ve seen no infestations in any open food packages. If their regeneration continues, we’ll consider a bug bomb, however I’m not enamored with the concept of irradiating my living spaces with poison. Though annoying, I prefer judicious use of a flyswatter and hands, for as long as they work.
New Unwelcome Guests for Breakfast
Fortunately, I’m pretty alert when I wake up. Alert enough to notice the Caribbean origin oatmeal package I was about to unseal was unusually clumpy. Closer inspection through the still sealed plastic packaging revealed a tiny wormlike critter inching alongside the webby oatmeal clump. I left the package sealed, waiting for the next available trash site.
I’m all for supporting a vibrant ecosystem, but my tolerance for what forms it takes in my galley and food cupboards is very limited.
