Generally, I love where I live in south-western New Hampshire. But at the end of April and all through the month of May the black flies are plentiful and annoying.
I pretty much write off the entire month of May as lovely weather to look at from the safety of indoors. It’s a shame that just as the sun begins to get warm and the days are longer and everyone wants to be in the yard doing something, these little bugs make life miserable.
You would think it’s no big deal. They are just tiny flying bugs. I lived in Florida for 27 years and believe me I saw some nasty, awful creatures down there, but nothing was as horrendous as these flies.
They buzz your head and fly into your ears. Wearing long sleeves and a hat helps some, but they crawl up under the hat and into the sleeves and gloves, etc. and BITE! The bites are itchy, but not right away. In fact you can’t really tell they are biting until later.
That’s when the welts begin to appear with a horrible itch. My bitten ear is swollen and red and I have a lump the size of a quarter on my arm.
Hence, the net. When we first moved to NH, we saw people wearing nets over their heads in Spring … and laughed at them! Now, it is how I dress to do any type of yard work this time of year. Even so, I am not safe outside for long. Inevitably I end up with a new welt someplace.
The photo is a self portrait from last year. I took it of my reflection in the slider.
Happy Spring! (And don’t come to New Hampshire in May).
New England's Narrow Road 