Wednesday, March 4, 2009


NO-SEE-UMS
O

There are several expressions that are unique to the American Southwest. One of those, is "No-See-Ums", which is a wonderfully perfect description for the itty-bitty little bugs that exist here, and that manage to bite everybody without anyone ever having seen them.

In my own experience, there are 2 types of "No-See-Ums"......one that bites you quickly and without you having even noticed that it did, until you see the artwork that's been left behind: a kind of semi-circle-design of little red marks that might be an image of their royal crest. It itches like crazy.....you scratch it like crazy.....it sits there for a couple of days, and then it vanishes.

The other "No-See-Um" usually attacks your face, where it leaves a painful bite filled with some kind of white gook that, if you don't squeeze like hell to remove it, will become infected and stay where it was planted, where it'll and keep itching and hurting for many months to come.

I was just now thinking that there exist individuals that might be called "No-See-Ums".......the kind of person who smiles at you and maybe hugs you with what seems to like genuine affection, yet after you've spent some time with them, you feel kinda lousy and you wonder why.....until you realize that they've shot several bites of psychological poison into your system, and that you've got to clean up the mess they made, if you'd like to return to being as happy as you were before they arrived to kill your joy.

Have YOU been with a
human "No-See-Um" lately?
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