Autumn in Oregon is so beautiful! Everywhere I turn, I see colors of gold and yellow and red, and this year, they seem to be especially lovely. It’s interesting to see which trees turn first, which ones have a mixture of yellow and green, and to see the progression of flaming colors to leafless trees, which quite frankly, happens far too fast for me. I think Autumn should last at least another month with the trees and shrubs on “stop” until I feel as though I have drunk my fill.
This morning as I drove down our long, steep driveway, there were three deer right in front of me! They immediately moved away, but they too, are a sign of Fall. They didn’t hurry too far off, so I was able to watch them for awhile.
Those are the beauties of October. But there are other “visitors” at this time of year, visitors that make me shudder when I see them. They are on my windows and screens when the afternoons are warm and the sun heats up the glass. They give me the creeps, and no matter what I do, they won’t go away.
What are they? These stupid things!
Box Elder Beetles. Even through the screen they’re ugly. Even if I tap the screen to make them get off, they just come right back. Somehow they crawl through the screen, under the sliding glass door, and into the bedroom!! YUK!!!
I called a pest control place. They told me there really isn’t anything they can do about it; that it’d cost us a lot of money for them to come out and spray, but it really doesn’t do any good.
They crawl fast.
They crawl slow and sun themselves on my window.
Even through the sunset, they’re ugly. Sometimes I have as many as 50 on one window. They remind me of the B-52 “kakaroaches” back home in Hawai‘i. Ever since one flew down my back, I am disgusted by anything that even resembles one.
This was a slow day; the temperature is supposed to be 70 tomorrow, so I will probably have an onslaught of these pesky creatures.
A Mānoa Girl's Bloggie 
I sometimes use the garden hose, or fill a spray bottle with vinegar water and spray them off the house. I doubt it does much to them, but it REALLY makes me feel powerful. And I feel better.
Here in New Mexico we call them “adobe bugs,” but where I grew up in Kansas they were (properly) called “box elder beetles.” They love to crawl into the inevitable crevices in old adobe houses and then come out when things warm up. Yours are probably looking for a cozy place to spend the winter (LOL). When I was a kid they swarmed by the bazillions near my school…THEN we called them “nasty bugs.” Whatever you call them, they are icky but not harmful.
hugsssssss
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Love the colors of your sunset, but don’t like those beetles blocking the view. Are they seasonal? Do they go away when winter arrives, or what? I hate to think they’re about all the time. In the south we used to get invaded by Japanese beetles, but the mating season don’t last too long. Once they mate, they disappear, but not after doing so much damage to our plants! Dog-gone nasty creatures.
Yes! Autumn is my FAVORITE time of the year here where Georgia is famous for it’s fall colors! Breathtaking indeed.