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Sunday, March 12th 2006

9:44 AM

Camping in the Keys

A friend from the mainland visited the Keys this week. He likes to stay at one of the area KOA campgrounds. Some other friends up north are planning a spring camping trip with their kids. They're ready to pack up the sleeping bags, haul out the tent and hit the road.

I love experiencing the beauty and openness of nature as much as anybody, but camping is definitely not my means to that end. My limit to roughing it is a night at a Motel 6. I'm so not into sleeping on the ground and peeing behind a tree. This doesn't make me a princess. I don't require deluxe suites when I travel -- but a decent bed and indoor plumbing are basic creature comforts.

The closest I came to the whole tent experience was a couple of years ago. My house had termites and needed to be tented. That happens a lot down here in the Keys. About every seven years or so, we need to go the full route to evict the pests from our homes. This is take-no-prisoners extermination. No, it doesn't mean that we camp out in our own houses. Quite the contrary. We pack up our pets, empty the fridge, remove any medications or pantry items that could be infiltrated, and leave home for a couple of days. We even have to take any living plants outside or they will cease to be living plants.

Then the exterminators come in and enrobe our dwellings.

That's my next door neighbor's place, which was tented earlier this week. Gave the neighborhood a sort of circus-y look, but there's no fun underneath that big top -- not for the termites and not for people, because . . .

Not exactly an advertisement for vacation accommodations.

However, a day later, the crew returned, removed the canvas and tested the interior to make sure that people who enter won't keel over like the gagillion bugs that were camping out inside.

All is apparently well -- meaning termite-free -- next door.

As for me, I'm going to take the Sunday crossword paper and camp outside in my beach chair for an hour or so.

3 What's Been Said.

Posted by jennifer macaire:

My computer isn't letting me see your pictures, but we had our house treated for wood bugs last year and got the wrapping treatment - on the inside. They sent us out of the house for a day - so I don't know what they did. And I think the wood bugs are back, so it didn't work that well. :-(

Sunday, March 12th 2006 @ 12:30 PM