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27 October 98 Tuesday

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I haven't done a Journal entry since-- when? Seems like as long ago as forever. Sometimes nothing seems important enough to write down... and maybe the stuff I do write down isn't. Tough call. I keep various small boxes and plastic jars around the house. Old bandaid boxes, old coffee jars. I have two or three around at any given time. They're for catching bugs, creeping or flying. I don't like to kill bugs. I'm convinced killing anything-- however deserving-- will give me bad Karma, so, the only bugs I do kill outright are mosquitos and clothes moths-- and ticks. The rest I catch (in boxes or jars) and throw outside-- except the winter ladybugs that turn up from time to time. Those I catch and give to my cousin to control the aphids on her hothouse plants. However, there are times when indirect eradication of destructive insect pests is necessary. Like when the house has to be fumigated to keep the termites and powder post beetles at bay. Or when ants and centipedes must be driven out. I don't like spraying, but I don't spray directly and I tell myself that the bugs have a fighting chance to escape. (My conscience still bothers me, though.) I have lots of spiders in the house. They do a good job of keeping down the population of other insects, at no Karmic cost to me. No, I don't mind spiders-- as long as they don't crawl on me. I do keep a watch to make sure I'm not giving house room to black widows or brown recluses. Often I've found myself herding a suspicious looking arachnid into a jar so I can take a closer look. So far, I haven't had any nasty surprises. So, if you visit me and you see small empty boxes and jars in odd places, it's because of the bugs.