PCC News Monthly March 2016 | Page 20

Those DAMN Bugs! I love to go hiking. Especially to beautiful pristine places where I can feel I am out in nature in all it’s glory. Beautiful trees, scenery, and smells. When I arrive there I bask in it’s glory and my rewards of the hike. Then, invariable while I am enjoying my time, a little dinky gnat will start flying around my head and try to get into my eyes. I’ll brush it away, continue my enjoyment and then the dang thing returns. I brush it away again, then again, then again, This gnat is starting to piss me off. I try to move to another spot but the stupid thing follows me. No matter where I go it follows. I decided I’m going to kill it and get rid of it once and for all so I can enjoy myself here. Finally it returns and I clap my hands and BINGO I got it. Whew. Now back to enjoying my view. I take a deep breath and gaze out upon the wonder. Another bug flies in my face. This time there’s two of them. That did it. I’m breaking out my netting which covers my hat and keeps the bugs off of my face. I finally figure out how to put it on, and I put it on my head. I see the bugs flying around still, but now they are landing on the netting in front of my face. I still have to stare at them but at least they are not on my face. That’s better. For some reason my view doesn’t look as good. The netting is sort of thick and is blocks much of the clear view. I feel I’m in a tent instead of out in the wilderness. I guess I’ll just have to live with this......all because of these stupid little bugs. I look down at my dog that is smiling and wagging his tail. He looks very happy as he always is when we are hiking. I see some bugs crawling on his eyes and around his mouth. For some reason he doesn’t even 20 March 2016 pccnews notice them. He may blink his eyes once in a while to deter the bugs but he stays focused on the fun time he is having. He runs around and shakes his head once in a while to deter the bugs. Never does he seem mad or frustrated. He’s still having fun. What can I say, he’s just a dumb dog and doesn’t know the difference. I sit eating an apple....under my netting, watching my dog run naked through the bushes, chasing rabbits, barking with joy and having a wonderful time. He comes over to me wagging his tail with excitement looking for some water to drink. I put a bowl of water down which he laps up with vigor. He looks at me.... with those bugs still crawling on his eyes......with a look that says “Why aren’t you out here running around enjoying this place”, and then he’s off again chasing a squirrel. I think about that for a few minutes. Hmmmm. Bugs are part of this wonderful wilderness. I guess God created them for some reason, other than to just bug me. I take my hat off and close my eyes. I feel and hear the bugs around my face. This time I just let them walk on me. They feel weird on my face but they don’t seem to be biting me. What the heck do they want? Since they aren’t biting me and I’m getting use to them walking on me, I open my eyes. I bug comes near my eyes and I blink. It flies off. Another one comes, I blink and it flies off. The ones walking on my face and neck I just try to ignore. I instead look out on the beautiful scenery and focus my attention there. I blink my eyes every once in a while and just accept the bugs as my friends. I guess they really like me for some reason. Thanks for all the attention. Man it’s wonderful to be out in God’s country. Come on you dumb......I mean smart dog. Let’s go see what’s down in that bug infested paradise. I’m sure no one else will be down there.......with all these bugs around. —Gordon Barth, Owner of IslandFitness Center