Sun Block, Bug Spray, and Sweat

That's what I smell like lately.  Yep, a little TMI, probably.

When DH and I got back from our (sorta) vacation on the evening of July 4th, we found two things that hadn't been at this little place here when we left:

Knee-high weeds in the entire garden and swarms of mosquitoes.

Normally, in the summer, the best times to weed the garden are early to mid-morning and late afternoon to sundown.  Unfortunately, those are also prime mosquito feeding times.  And we happen to have extraordinary mosquitoes lately, the kind that will even bite through denim jeans!  Not only will they bite right through my shirt and pants, they are completely unaffected by most bug sprays.  My go-to bug repellent for humans is Deep Woods OFF!, and if I can get my hands on the 'Sportsmen' version, all the better.  However, even that is only holding them off for about an hour and a half before the nastier little vampires start biting in spite of it.  Not a failing of the bug spray; the mosquitoes are just that bad.

So I have taken to weeding my garden during the middle of the day.  You know, the hottest part, when the sun is the highest, and all the experts tell you to avoid being outdoors for an extended length of time so you don't get skin cancer and/or heat exhaustion.  And, since it is the hottest part of the day, and our average humidity this time of year is somewhere above 65%, I am not wearing jeans to weed the garden.  I'm pretty dressed down: shorts and a tank top.  Even so, the sweat is flowing freely.  (Boy, I'm just full of TMI today.)

To protect myself from the scorching sun in my scantily clad state, I liberally apply a 50 SPF sunblock (Finally found one that works for me!  No sunburns so far, knock on wood).  And then, to protect myself from the mosquitoes that are desperate enough to come out in the withering mid-day sun (surprisingly a lot of them are venturing forth although they are only a small fraction of the early and late in the day horde) I liberally apply my sportsmen scent OFF!.  And I do mean liberally.  Probably not healthy to have it gleaming wetly on all exposed skin, but hey, I'm all ready anemic (another post for another day) I can't afford to be a mosquito buffet.

Which means that if you happen to stop by my house anytime from mid-day on, I will smell like sun block, bug spray, and sweat.  Good thing I'm not too concerned about impressing people. Well, honestly, I'm more concerned about the state of my garden than how I smell. I prefer my garden to be impressive. :0)  As for the smell, that goes away after sundown, when I shower all my protective goop off.

Look!  I found bean plants!  

There actually are veggies in all those weeds!