Sahamamama Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Okay, y'all. ;) A few of you Southerners are freaking me out, talking all matter-of-factly about your poisonous fire ants and your huge bugs and your roaches the size of cars. Oh, and your endemic mosquitoes. Shudder. Â http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=256879 Â I'm scared. Okay, just so we know, how big ARE the bugs and other creepy-crawly things in the South? Â [Note: This will be a make-or-break factor for Someone.] :willy_nilly: Â The only things that I love that crawl on the ground are babies. :svengo: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwg Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Be afraid. Be Very Afraid. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophia Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Had I known about the flying cockroaches before moving to Georgia, the move probably would not have happened. Â I'm glad I did not know about them because I love where I live :001_smile:. Â We've just learned to avoid fireant piles, and have fly swatters always available to get the bugs (pest control doesn't really work when you are close to the greenbelt and have a lot of trees.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snickelfritz Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Ticks. You left off ticks. It's not the big ones you need to worry about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tex-mex Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 The price of warm weather compared to long chilly winters, perhaps? ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Don't forget formosan termites in some areas. ;) Flying termites, yup, that was fun the first year. Â We're having an ant "issue" now back in the mid-west, so it's a trade off. Â Also don't forget alligators in some parts. I was totally freaked out by alligators before we moved there. By the time we left I found them kind of endearing in a weird way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sahamamama Posted March 24, 2011 Author Share Posted March 24, 2011 Had I known about the flying cockroaches before moving to Georgia, the move probably would not have happened. I'm glad I did not know about them because I love where I live :001_smile:.  We've just learned to avoid fireant piles, and have fly swatters always available to get the bugs (pest control doesn't really work when you are close to the greenbelt and have a lot of trees.)  Sophia, are you for real? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katemary63 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 FYI: The mosquitos in Arkansas couldn't hold a candle to those we had in Wisconsin. In fact, IMHO, Arkansas doesn't even have mosquitos. We can go outside at night and NOT use bug spray. In Kenosha, WI, If you are out in the county, you can not even walk from the house to the barn without it. It was horrible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sahamamama Posted March 24, 2011 Author Share Posted March 24, 2011 Okay, I just Googled "bugs in the South." Go ahead and do that. I double-dog dare you... Â Disclaimer: Some images may not be suitable for all viewing audiences, especially squeamish Northerners. Â I may not sleep tonight. Â That's it. Â High taxes? Who cares! Â Congestion? Smog? Who cares! Â Crime? Violence? Gangs and drugs in our town? Who cares! Â It's over for me... where's the snow shovel? Â I hate bugs. Centipedes down there are longer than my arm.... :001_huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophia Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Sophia, are you for real? Â Oh yeah, I'm for real!:crying: Â Most people call them palmetto bugs and they don't always fly...if that's any consolation. They're huge, though. Â They don't seem to have any reason for coming in the house~they aren't after food in the kitchen and they don't try to hide so they get swatted pretty quick when we see them, which I'd say is infrequently, but for the first five years it really creeped me out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dana Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Sophia, are you for real? Â You can do a search for Palmetto bugs. Roaches about two inches long... And yup, they can fly. Good news is they're mainly outside bugs. But I don't walk around the house in the summer in the dark. Â OTOH, we don't own a snow shovel :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sahamamama Posted March 24, 2011 Author Share Posted March 24, 2011 You can do a search for Palmetto bugs. Roaches about two inches long... And yup, they can fly.Good news is they're mainly outside bugs. But I don't walk around the house in the summer in the dark. Â OTOH, we don't own a snow shovel :D Â We own FOUR, and this winter we used every one of them... Â Hmmm.... what a dilemma. Â Flying bugs or snow? Â Flying bugs or snow? :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 I'm ready for flying bugs but my family seems to like shoveling snow. :svengo: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophia Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 We own FOUR, and this winter we used every one of them... Â Hmmm.... what a dilemma. Â Flying bugs or snow? Â Flying bugs or snow? :lol: Â Flying bugs. Take it from someone who's owned her fair share of shovels.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Dominion Heather Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Yeah, around here the ticks are bad. The stink bugs are bad, too. And gnats! I hate those things! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 I never saw fire ants until I moved to Central Texas. IOW, they're not in all parts of the South. Â Neither are big ol' roaches or palmetto bugs or centipedes. Â Mosquitoes...they're not limited to the South. :glare: Â I'll take creepy-looking bugs over snow any day, but the truth is that where you live makes a big difference in the kinds of creepy-crawlies you'll find there. The South is worth it. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patchfire Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Most people call them palmetto bugs and they don't always fly...if that's any consolation.They're huge, though. Â They don't seem to have any reason for coming in the house~they aren't after food in the kitchen and they don't try to hide so they get swatted pretty quick when we see them, which I'd say is infrequently, but for the first five years it really creeped me out. Â They want water. We had an awful time with them during the drought, but during the wet years, we rarely see them in the house. Â If it's any consolation to anyone reading, I grew up 100 miles north of where I now live. We have awful bug issues here. We didn't have any where I lived growing up (still definitely in the south). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrogMom5 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Here on the Gulf Coast of Florida the bugs are manageable. Certainly no worse than the Washington, DC area. Our city sprays for mosquitos. We have no flying roaches. We do have love bugs. They're weird but don't bite and only come out for a short time each year. Â Fire ants. It hurts when they bite and, if you have a reaction, can cause swelling for a day or two. Again, pest control and avoidance keeps them down. Â We have "no see 'ems" which are tiny bugs you can't really see but feel when they bite you. During the summer, we wear repellant if we're out in the evening. Â Alligators. We haven't crossed paths with any but, I have bad dreams about them. All the animals lovers need to forgive me now - any animal that views my children as food should be allowed to go extinct. Save the hippos, wolves, etc. Let the alligators go. Â You really never see them though. Denise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trish Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Fire ants are poisonous? Well, not in a deadly sense, I don't think. The thing is, once you know what their mounds look like, they're easy to spot and avoid. (However it isn't a great idea to run through the lawn barefoot here. I wait until we're up north to let my kids do that!) Â If you get a fireant bite (or several), one effective home remedy is to put Vicks Vaporub on it. I carry some in the car for that reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Margo out of lurking Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) I came to southern Virginia from an alpine desert climate (Colorado). Bugs in CO are tiny, fleas almost nonexistent, mosquitoes unrecognizable. We have mosquitoes down here, and stink bugs, and Asian beetles that look just like ladybugs, so not too bad. We have lots of groundhogs, snakes, and deer. On the country roads, you see a lot of skunk and possum roadkill. Â We have wonderful fireflies (but you have those in NJ, don't you?). I wear bug spray when I spend time outside in the warmer evenings. Â ETA: Oh, yes, we have ticks too, but they are probably worse further north (um, like NJ). Dd and I have never been bitten. Â There's nothing horrible here. And hey, we have loads of NJ transplants; you'd fit right in! Edited March 24, 2011 by Kristine out of lurking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Had I known about the flying cockroaches before moving to Georgia, the move probably would not have happened. I'm glad I did not know about them because I love where I live :001_smile:.  We've just learned to avoid fireant piles, and have fly swatters always available to get the bugs (pest control doesn't really work when you are close to the greenbelt and have a lot of trees.)  We lived in Georgia for 16 years. One of the necessary line items in our budget was for a pest control service. Once we had them, we didn't have major issues. Or they were dealt with quickly. We were near Atlanta (Fayette) and backed up to a semi-swampy area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommymilkies Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 We have tons of cave crickets here. But they're much better than fireants! I'm still traumatized by them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpidarkomama Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 I'm much more afraid of Midwestern cockroaches - those skitter around your food in the cupboards. GROSS!!!!! The big ones here just wander through once in a while. I just sweep them out the door. Last "season" I think, at most, we had about 15 indoors total (not at once!). Not too bad. Â The WORST bug in Georgia, IMHO, is the gnat. The first spring I lived here I got 160 bites the first week they hatched. Horrible things. This year, I've managed to only get 75 bites so far. They're far more itchy than mosquito bites. Ugh. Â Fire ants you also see pretty easily and can avoid. We haven't had a run-in yet. Â Lots of termites too. We've had four swarms alight in the backyard in the past two weeks. But we also have a very proactive, inexpensive, termite service! Â Bugs aside, we've lived in coastal Georgia for 15 months now (moved here from Oregon), and we LOVE LOVE LOVE it! Very happy (much to my surprise!). Gorgeous country, and very friendly people. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 We hibernate in the summer to avoid the mosquitoes. I get eaten alive by them when outdoors (ds does too) & absolutely hate them. It's almost as if I have an allergic reaction to mosquito bites. There have been various times that I've gotten so many bites that I ended up physically ill. Same w/ fire ants. Nasty creatures. Ds stepped in a fire ant hill as a toddler & he & I got them all over our legs. We both had hard welts that stayed on our legs for about 2 weeks. For that reason, I carry benadryl w/ us all the time. Â The palmetto bugs are gross, but at least they don't bite. (At least, not that I know of...) Â I'd love to move away from here (for various reasons, the bug issues are really just minor). But, it would sure be nice to live somewhere w/out the bug issues. Â I vote for keeping the snow shovels & snow. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 The WORST bug in Georgia, IMHO, is the gnat. The first spring I lived here I got 160 bites the first week they hatched. Horrible things. This year, I've managed to only get 75 bites so far. They're far more itchy than mosquito bites. Ugh. Â Fire ants you also see pretty easily and can avoid. We haven't had a run-in yet. Â Lots of termites too. We've had four swarms alight in the backyard in the past two weeks. But we also have a very proactive, inexpensive, termite service! Â Â Â And the chiggers... I forgot about those things, they are awful! Termite protection is a must in Georgia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paige Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 I had scarier bugs in Pennsylvania than I have seen in VA or GA. The bugs in the south look like bugs. The bugs I saw in the north scared the fire out of me because they looked like weird alien bugs. I'll send someone to squish southern bugs or do it myself but I threw bowls over northern bugs, ran away screaming, and hid in another part of the house until Dh came home. Dude. I had a creepy hairy thing chase me in PA. We have a pest guy come out twice a year and put stuff on the lawn for the fire ants and have very few problems. The fire ants and chiggers are awful but if you treat the lawn, they aren't so bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paz Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 The most digusting bug ever that I discovered when we moved to FL was a mole cricket. http://insects.tamu.edu/extension/youth/bug/bug012.html The good news is that I only saw them at my dd's local softball field. We live in a neighborhood that is away from town. There is a lake directly behind our house. We have a pest control service that sprays monthly and don't have a bug problem at all. In the evening when we take the dogs out there are a few mosquitoes around but they spray for them so they really aren't that bothersome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Um. It's amazing what you can get used to over a few years... ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brenda in FL Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 They want water. We had an awful time with them during the drought, but during the wet years, we rarely see them in the house. Â If it's any consolation to anyone reading, I grew up 100 miles north of where I now live. We have awful bug issues here. We didn't have any where I lived growing up (still definitely in the south). Â I thought I had seen it all in south Florida - but the bugs are worse in Atlanta - especially in you have a lot of trees around your house. I finally got control of the ones that must have moved in when the house was vacant before we moved there. Â The only pesty bugs so far in NC have been ants (although the others are here.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lilymax Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Here on the Gulf Coast of Florida the bugs are manageable. ... We have no flying roaches. Â I'm sorry if this sounds rude, but are you SERIOUS??? You live on the FL panhandle and have never seen a palmetto bug? I cannot imagine! Â We were stationed in Gulfport, MS and Pensacola, FL for a total of four years. Our very first night down there, a 2" palmetto bug crawled out of the heating vent and flew into my hair! They were everywhere, and totally creeped me out. Â One night, we ordered pizza and made the mistake of leaving the box in the kitchen unattended. We went in to get a second slice, and when I lifted the lid, there was a huge palmetto bug gnawing along the edge of my pizza. He was so big, he left little grooved bite marks in the cheese, where he'd eaten--I am not kidding! Â We live near Atlanta now and thankfully, I never see those monsters anymore. We found them to be just horrible along the Gulf Coast, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) Don't forget formosan termites in some areas. ;) Flying termites, yup, that was fun the first year.  Oh yes, we have formosans. When they swarm it's AWFUL, but we got a termite specialist who is treating them so we'll see come April if he's worth his fees or not. But for the record, he said that formosans can live anywhere and are even found in Canada. Go figure. :001_huh: Also don't forget alligators in some parts. I was totally freaked out by alligators before we moved there. By the time we left I found them kind of endearing in a weird way. Do you know the alligator call? There is a certain call that you can make and they will come to you. Well the mamas will. :)  Here on the Gulf Coast of Florida the bugs are manageable. Certainly no worse than the Washington, DC area. Our city sprays for mosquitos. We have no flying roaches. We do have love bugs. They're weird but don't bite and only come out for a short time each year. Fire ants. It hurts when they bite and, if you have a reaction, can cause swelling for a day or two. Again, pest control and avoidance keeps them down.  We have "no see 'ems" which are tiny bugs you can't really see but feel when they bite you. During the summer, we wear repellant if we're out in the evening.  Alligators. We haven't crossed paths with any but, I have bad dreams about them. All the animals lovers need to forgive me now - any animal that views my children as food should be allowed to go extinct. Save the hippos, wolves, etc. Let the alligators go.  You really never see them though. Denise  Denise, I just wanted to let you know that alligators will only go after what they know will fit in their mouths. They don't chew there food. They chomp and swallow it so if it's bigger than their mouth, they won't go after it. Usually they are more afraid of us than we are of them. They will get aggressive though if they are a mama and their nest is near by, but that's the same with all mamas. :)  Also I wanted to let you, Stacia, and everyone else know about meat tenderizer. That stuff works great for bee/wasp stings, mosquito bites, fire ant bites any kind of bite like that it will treat. You buy it in the spice aisle of the grocery store. It's a white powder. You mix it with water to form a paste and put it on the bite site for about a half an hour (doesn't hurt) and then rinse it off and put hydrocortisone cream or calamine lotion on it and take benadryl by mouth. Repeat if necessary. The meat tenderizer breaks down the protein enzymes of the insect's bite and neutralizes it. It also works if you're snorkeling and get stung by a jelly fish or brush up against fire coral or mustard coral. It's a great all around cure for those things. :) Just wanted to pass that along. :)  We hibernate in the summer to avoid the mosquitoes. I get eaten alive by them when outdoors (ds does too) & absolutely hate them. It's almost as if I have an allergic reaction to mosquito bites. There have been various times that I've gotten so many bites that I ended up physically ill. Same w/ fire ants. Nasty creatures. Ds stepped in a fire ant hill as a toddler & he & I got them all over our legs. We both had hard welts that stayed on our legs for about 2 weeks. For that reason, I carry benadryl w/ us all the time. The palmetto bugs are gross, but at least they don't bite. (At least, not that I know of...)  I'd love to move away from here (for various reasons, the bug issues are really just minor). But, it would sure be nice to live somewhere w/out the bug issues.  I vote for keeping the snow shovels & snow. :lol:  I've never even seen snow in person. lol South Florida doesn't get love bugs anymore once you get past about Stuart. We don't get the gnats bad either, but we do have the palmetto bugs and they're huge and fly, but are mostly at the beach or in the pines. The cockroaches are huge too and they do look for food. I woke up one morning to find a 3 inch long cockroach eating a skittle that my son had dropped on the floor. :001_huh: Edited March 24, 2011 by Ibbygirl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 I'm sorry if this sounds rude, but are you SERIOUS??? You live on the FL panhandle and have never seen a palmetto bug? I cannot imagine! We were stationed in Gulfport, MS and Pensacola, FL for a total of four years. Our very first night down there, a 2" palmetto bug crawled out of the heating vent and flew into my hair! They were everywhere, and totally creeped me out.  One night, we ordered pizza and made the mistake of leaving the box in the kitchen unattended. We went in to get a second slice, and when I lifted the lid, there was a huge palmetto bug gnawing along the edge of my pizza. He was so big, he left little grooved bite marks in the cheese, where he'd eaten--I am not kidding!  We live near Atlanta now and thankfully, I never see those monsters anymore. We found them to be just horrible along the Gulf Coast, though.  Yeah they're on the Gulf Coast as well. My mom's from Tampa and she had them in her house too as a kid. They're everywhere there are trees basically. Frogmom has just been lucky I think. ;) :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaffodilDreams Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Crime? Violence? Gangs and drugs in our town? Who cares! Â It's over for me... where's the snow shovel? Â Â Â You wouldn't necessarily leave the crime, drugs, and gangs behind. We have all of that down here, too! In fact, my nice, quiet, small-ish, well-to-do, very-proud-of-itself town is drug central in this area. The gangs seem to be contained to the city, but still . . . Â In addition to bugs of all sorts (did you know about recluses and black widows?), we also have copperheads, water moccassins, and rattle snakes - - and they're already out. They were out before the end of winter!!!! The worst mosquitoes I've encountered have been in MI, but we do have them here. Dd gets eaten alive three seasons a year. Thank goodness we don't have palmetto bugs, but my inlaws do. Ugh! The giant non-flying cockroaches are bad enough. I scream like I'm being killed whenever I see one. I'm tough when it comes to snakes and spiders, but roaches give me the heebie jeebies. Â And, we're not supposed to be anywhere near gator country, but there have been recent news reports of those creatures showing up along a major river here. The last I read, the wildlife agency figures we have "significant numbers". Yippee! Â I would join you for the snow if I could. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaffodilDreams Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Oh, my goodness! I can't stand cave crickets! I don't know which is worse, cave crickets or giant roaches. Okay, probably the roaches. Luckily we don't see too many of either. Â Oh, I forgot about cave crickets. Hate those, too!!!! They're equally as horrid as cockroaches - maybe worse. I've had them jump at me. Unfortunately, we do see many cave crickets. They love our deck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arghmatey Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Here's a site listing everything yucky about our city (on the left) and why we love it anyway:  http://www.houstonitsworthit.com/your_HIWI_submissions  I love Houston and have no opinion about people who move here from anywhere else.  Good luck with your decision! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmkzbcb Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Personally I would choose a 2" palmetto bug over giant rats the size of a cat any day. My SIL lived in NY for several years and told horror stories of those rats. No thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawna in Texas Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Personally I would choose a 2" palmetto bug over giant rats the size of a cat any day. My SIL lived in NY for several years and told horror stories of those rats. No thank you. Â I saw a nutria in Sugarland, Texas. They look like giant rats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 In the south, cats aren't just for killing mice. My cats are much more likely to hunt bugs or lizards than mice. One will sit in the middle of the house constantly vigilant for anything that crawls, slithers or flies. Good cat until I find lizard skeletons behind and under things where they've crawled to die. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annabel Lee Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 I'm a snow girl. I'll take snow and freezing temps over huge bugs, snakes, hurricanes & tornadoes any day. I guess one person's snow is another's swimming roach (one swam UP the pipe into the bathtub in TX). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scmama Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Ohhh I'm really starting to miss FL now!! The bugs down there aren't as bad or as big as the bugs in SC. I grew up in FL, so I'm use to all those creepy crawlies. But in SC, we were driving down the road, and a huge green grasshopper jumped on the windshield. HUGE! In FL, you never see them bigger than an inch. THIS ONE WAS MASSIVE. Â We have these cricket things that love the bathroom areas here. They jump at you too!! Those things make me scream!! The ants are horrible here in SC. If you run the water hose during the summer, you can actually watch the ground come to life with ants. I thought they would drown, nope!!! In FL, the ants run from water. Â The things I've seen here...yuck!! I'd rather be in FL with the palmetto bugs, hurricanes, and those wonderful alligators any day!! And some one posted about the gator calling....I know that mama call....in FL you teach your kids to watch for that sound, cause that means there are babies, which means mama is very near by. Just like you teach your kids to listen out for the sound of the rattler. Â Oh I can't wait to get back to FL!!! :) LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H.S. Burrow Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 They want water. We had an awful time with them during the drought, but during the wet years, we rarely see them in the house. Â If it's any consolation to anyone reading, I grew up 100 miles north of where I now live. We have awful bug issues here. We didn't have any where I lived growing up (still definitely in the south). Â Â Where I grew up in Southeast Texas, they came in during dry times AND when the ground was saturated...which in Southeast Texas was pretty often. Â And yes, they do fly. But you know what fixes that?? A Big 'Ol Cheap Can of hairspray. :lol: Glues their wings to their bodies so that you can: Â A. Throw a shoe on them B. Get someone who doesn't mind the "crunch" to step on them (& remove them!) Â For perspective....we have recently moved to the Northeast. Eastern Shore of Maryland. While we haven't had *much* snow, it has been terribly COLD....unending COLD for this Texas girl. Â While I like snow, the past month Texas has had highs in the 70s & 80s............and we're still in the 40s. Â Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FO4UR Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Oh...I grew up in IL, lived in NC for about 5 years, and am now in OH (snowbelt). Â Take it from me - Go South!!! Â See my avi pic? That's NC in February. I miss NC. Just a few days ago I was shoveling myself out of snow up to my knees thinking "It's MARCH!!!" Â I am truly thankful that I was in NC when my babies were babies...I *detest* fussing with coats and hats and mittens for 3 little people. Â You get used to the bugs. My dd5 actually misses her luna moths. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KAR120C Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 In the south, cats aren't just for killing mice. My cats are much more likely to hunt bugs or lizards than mice. One will sit in the middle of the house constantly vigilant for anything that crawls, slithers or flies. Good cat until I find lizard skeletons behind and under things where they've crawled to die. :tongue_smilie: I call her "Orkin" ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ibbygirl Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 I call her "Orkin" ;) Â :lol::lol::lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sleepymommy Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 I live in Virginia, I was raised here. But I lived in NY for 10 years of my adulthood and loved it! Dh does not want to live any farther north than Virginia and I refuse to live any farther south. I don't like bugs, although we have a ton here and I love snow. Â There are different parts of the south with a large population of transplants like Charlottesville, Va or Cary, NC. It would be quite easy to fit in and feel welcome. But leaving the vicinity would turn you into an outsider. Â If your husband is "foreign looking" he may get comments. Being raised in this area, I've become accustomed to it. Being Christian would help alleviate that a lot though. Â The bugs that I see a lot of are spiders (black widows, brown recluse are common), stinkbugs, mosquitos (tons), chiggers, ticks (again tons), fire ants, and slugs. Â If you can get past all the little creepy crawlies and the hot, humid summers than I'd say from what all you've described that you like that you would really enjoy living in the south. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhonda in TX Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 I see a cockroach every few months. Bengal is your friend. :) (I do admit to seeing a few flying ones in my life and they freak. me. out. I hate cockroaches. Really, really hate them.) Â Fire ants? Eh. I don't worry about them. You can't miss the anthills. Sprinkle a little Amdro and you're golden. Â I've never seen a huge centipede outside of the zoo. Â Alligators? Only in swampy areas and I don't live close to those. Â Mosquitos are the bane of my children's existence in the summer. Â The only tick I've ever seen was at summer camp. (and I'm pretty sure y'all have ticks up north, too) Â You know what scares me? Deep snow and icy roads. No, thanks. I'll take heat and a few bugs over that any day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaMa2005 Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 And the chiggers... I forgot about those things, they are awful! Termite protection is a must in Georgia. Â And the poor people who don't know that the lovely Spanish moss hanging from our trees is infested with chiggers. I still remember my friend who decided to decorate the INSIDE of her house with some Spanish moss directly off the trees. Her whole family became one itchy mess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Honey, skip the bugs and come to Lancaster County, PA :) Â We don't have fire ants, mosquitos, or roaches. If you live in the country, the only thing you will see are mice and centipedes (small ones). If you live in town or the city, you don't even have those. Â *displaced from Charleston, SC* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dobela Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 FYI: The mosquitos in Arkansas couldn't hold a candle to those we had in Wisconsin. In fact, IMHO, Arkansas doesn't even have mosquitos. We can go outside at night and NOT use bug spray. In Kenosha, WI, If you are out in the county, you can not even walk from the house to the barn without it. It was horrible. OK, I am in Arkansas and I agree, to a point. I live where there are few mosquitos. But if you ever happen to go to the Northeast corner, you need special gear! All that rice farming breeds an unbelieveable number of mosquitos. You simply don't go out without spray. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nono Posted March 24, 2011 Share Posted March 24, 2011 Flying bugs or snow? Flying bugs or snow? :lol:  Well, you can kill the bugs and have the kids build a bugman, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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