all in my head

I dreamed of lice last night.  Nice, I know.  In the dream someone was about to sit on my (non-existent) white ottoman but I cautioned them that it had lice on it.  I'd been told they looked like sesame seeds but in my dream they were little black pepper spots that moved.  Maybe I was thinking of fleas.  I was using something like a magnet to remove them.  The woman chose to sit there anyway.  I think I knew her in real life but now all I can remember are the bugs.

Every time I turn around the kids' school is sending me another notice that 'lice have been found in your child's classroom'.  I recognize the note so I can now throw it away quickly and try to avoid thinking about it.  Seems to not be working.  I ran my hand through Pook's thick, soft, wavy red hair last night. "I should probably check your hair for lice."  "They did that already, at school."  They checked everyone.  Every last head.  Which is good, right?  Because now I don't need to check them and my house is, for now, safe.  Unless I have them.  I itch every time I think about the school- and that is often since I'm there or working on projects for it so often.

Then the news has to slam me with articles about bed bugs.  I may never travel again.  The pest control guy was here yesterday and said they might have to bring back DDT since nothing else killed bed bugs.  (You can see a map of where they're being found (everywhere) here.  I have no intention of doing so, but you might want to see it.)  The pest control guy (from an environmentally safe pest control company) was here to deal with some cockroaches. We'd seen a couple, but not enough to make me call for a spraying update.  Then one night CD and I were brushing our teeth, side by side, and I glanced into the mirror to see a gigantic cockroach above me.  I considered hiding in the bathtub, but decided to brave it and dash under it and out the doorway, toothbrush in hand.  There was no way it was going to get near my toothbrush.  Glagck!  (I just made up that lovely sound.)  The next morning I got to clean up the walls where CD had smashed it- in multiple locations.  There were three smears, two on the walls and one on the ceiling.  I think he used one of my shoes. 

Dang, now I've started itching.  I heard that heat could kill lice.  I started letting my hair dryer come close to burning my head, just in case.  I started scrubbing extra hard in the shower. It could be that the extra scrubbing and the heat are what are causing the itching. Or it could all be in my head.  But please, not on it.