After the rain
July 3rd
I knew it was a mistake the moment I stepped on a path in my forest. First of all — it was dusk already, and nothing good ever happens when the sky starts to get darker when you are outside. Then I quickly realized, to survive I have to keep moving. Stopping even for a second, just to take a photo was endangering me. I was surrounded. The danger was coming from every side, it was a relentless attack. I could feel it everywhere on my body, on every uncovered part. They were everywhere, I felt them and heard them, but couldn’t see them until it was too late. So I kept moving fast, through the foliage of shrubs that were expanding, bloated with all the rain that came down in the afternoon. Each branch was expanding and was making each path narrower and more precarious. And they knew that I was in trouble, already hurt and bleeding here and there, and they were preparing a full attack on me. Their scouts were already nearby, and the main force was just waiting in the shadows for the moment I would get tired and would stop moving. That would be the end of me — so I pushed forward, through the wet leaves and muddy and slippery pathways. Trying to save myself and outrun them. The mosquitos.
Well, as you can see — I survived. I got home safely, but badly hurt from tens of mosquito bites. A quick shower and vitamin D helped to ease the pain somewhat. But the bite marks and the itching, especially on my legs, are still pronounced this morning. I don’t mind the mosquitos usually, they are there as annoying pointless gits who can make summer days, and especially evenings, quite unpleasant. Ok, they are not completely pointless — they are the main food source for a lot of birds, so there is that. But the sheer relentlessness and quantity of their attack on my body last evening surprised me. I guess they were just waiting for a good opportunity. After the rains last afternoon, the temperature dropped by 15 degrees in an hour, and there I was in a t-shirt and shorts, full of delicious blood they could gorge themselves on. Quite an ordeal for an evening walk.
