pictures of bed bugs: Mayıs 2012

14 Mayıs 2012 Pazartesi

A Scene from Coupling: Series 3: Faithless by Steven Moffatt

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[bbc]

* This is a favorite scene from a favorite show. I couldn't find quotes from it anywhere on the Internet, so I thought I'd put it up to share with people who are already fans and maybe interest people who haven't seen it.

Crazy beautiful JANE, who reports traffic from a helicopter, has her eye on hunky JAMES, the host of the radio station's religious program. In order to get closer to him, JANE has accepted a Friday night invitation from JAMES—to a religious discussion group that he holds at his church.

James OK, everybody, say hi to Jane.

Others Hi Jane. Hi Jane.

James Jane, like all of us, has a keen interest in her faith and how it relates to all aspects of her life. Don't worry Jane, it's all very informal. Don't be scared.

Jane OK.

Man I'll just sit next to Jane then, shall I? Don't worry. I won't bite you.

Jane Oh? I won't break your neck then.

James OK, well, we're all getting to know Jane, so have any questions for her?

Older Woman Jane, I was wondering, have you been religious all your life or is it something that's happened to you quite recently?

Jane Ummm … both.

Older Woman I don't think I quite understand your answer.

Jane Oh, I'm sorry. Both!

Man 2 Can I just ask, what aspect of the religious experience most appeals to you?

Jane What aspect?

Man 2 Yes.

Jane Of the religious experience? Of the many aspects of the religious experience?

Man 2 Exactly.

Jane Is my favorite? Well … I'd have to say … God.
[lifts up her hands]

Man 2 God?

Jane He's good, isn't He?

James Well, I don't think you'll get much argument out of us lot.

Jane Ooh, and that was just my first go!

Andrew Ah, can I ask something?

Jane[leans forward with a lot of cleavage]You go right ahead, dear.

Andrew What do you think of the crisis of faith?

Jane Sounds fantastic!

Andrew Sometimes I find—when my prayers seem to go unanswered and it's so very hard to find God's love in my life—that it's difficult to keep believing that God is still a real force in the world, watching over us. I find doubt so often in my heart.

Jane You know, [turns to James] perhaps I can help here?

James Sure, go ahead. That's what this is all about.

Jane[back to Andrew]What's your name?

Andrew Andrew.

Jane Andrew, lovely! Well, Andrew, there's something I probably better explain. God is just a made up person. You can't expect Him to be answering your prayers if He's not real, can you? That's a bit like writing to the characters of a soap opera and expecting a reply, Mr. Silly Sausage.

James Ah, Jane?

Jane Yes? James.

James We are of the opinion that God is in fact real.

Jane No!

James Yes!

Jane He's not, is He?

Man 2 You don't believe in God?

Jane Well, I suppose I never found Him very realistic.

James Well, here we all adhere to the idea of one true, loving God, I'm afraid.

Jane Oh no, that can't be right.

James I'm sorry?

Jane You see they've got different gods in different countries. You should've checked that.

James Well yes, obviously, there are other faiths—

Jane What if they're like MPs? And there's different gods for different areas, and they all sort of report to a sort of head god. … Thor, or somebody.

James Thor?

Jane Thor! The thunder god! The one with the hammer. We did him in school. He was totally my favorite. You know, I'm not that easy, but show me a muscular blonde who can control the weather, and this girl's on all fours.

James OK, let's move on, should we? Does anyone else got something they want to discuss?

Older Woman Perhaps we should go back to what we were discussing last week.

James Ah yes, we had a very lively debate last week, didn't we?

Jane Really? What about?

Older Woman Sex before marriage.

Jane Ah! Now you're talking my language.

Older Woman We're against it.

Jane I'm sorry?

Older Woman A number of us feel that premarital sex is a very bad thing.

Jane Well, you're so wrong. Shagging's brilliant! Take it when you can get it is what I say.

James Ah, Jane, there are many different views on this. Some people are happy with the idea of multiple partners. Some people, like myself, simply prefer to avoid premarital sex.

Jane What you don't seem to realize is—

James Is something wrong, Jane?

Jane Nooooooooooo!

Summer 2004

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This is not a comprehensive list of anything.

This is a list of things I’m interested in doing this summer. There are a lot of movies on here because I love love love movies. There are some concerts and a few book signings.

Use the info links to double-check locations and times. I make mistakes.

I won’t get to them all, but I’d like to get to a lot of them. If you want to go to one, let me know! (Use the AIM C link.) I’d love to have someone to go with!

I’ll be updating this frequently, so please check back.

Oh, and did I mention everything on this list is free?
Yeah, it is.

Tuesday June 15
7:00pm	Helen Fielding - Barnes & Noble, Union Square	read about it »
8:00pm	Opera in Central Park - Great Lawn	info \| AIM C

Wednesday June 16
8:00pm	Opera in Central Park - Great Lawn	info \| AIM C

Friday June 18
7:00pm	Newport Jazz Festival - Summerstage	info \| AIM C

Saturday June 19
7:30pm	Ladysmith Black Mambazo - Prospect Park, Brooklyn	info \| AIM C

Monday June 21
Dusk	"American Graffiti" - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C

Friday June 25
7:00am	Ruben Studdard - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C

Wednesday June 30
7:30pm	Chuck Barris - Barnes & Noble, Astor Place	info \| AIM C

Friday July 2
7:00am	Clay Aiken - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C

Saturday July 3
3:00pm	NY Pops Hooray for Hollywood - Summerstage	info \| AIM C

Monday July 5
Dusk	"All the President's Men" - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C

Wednesday July 7
Dusk	"The Ring" - Pier 54	info \| AIM C
Dusk	Movie TBD - Socrates Sculpture Park, Astoria	info \| AIM C

Thursday July 8
12:30pm	Fame on 42nd Street \| Bombay Dreams \| 42nd Street \| Mamma Mia! - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C

Friday July 9
Dusk	"Raiders of the Lost Ark" - Pier 25	info \| AIM C

Wednesday July 14
8:00pm	Philharmonic - Central Park, Great Lawn	info \| AIM C
Dusk	Movie TBD - Socrates Sculpture Park, Astoria	info \| AIM C

Thursday July 15
12:30pm	Movin' Out \| Aida \| Fiddler on the Roof - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C
7:30pm	Flamenco - Central Park bandshell	info \| AIM C

Monday July 19
8:00pm	Philharmonic - Great Lawn	info \| AIM C
	Jerry Stahl - Barnes & Noble, 6 Ave & 22nd	info \| AIM C

Tuesday July 20
7:30pm	Orchestra - Central Park bandshell	info \| AIM C

Wednesday July 21
Dusk	Movie TBD - Socrates Sculpture Park, Astoria	info \| AIM C

Thursday July 22
12:30pm	Here Lies Jenny \| Beauty and the Beast \| The Phantom of the Opera \| Hairspray - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C

Friday July 23
Dusk	"Goonies" - Pier 25	info \| AIM C

Wednesday July 28
Dusk	Movie TBD - Socrates Sculpture Park, Astoria	info \| AIM C

Thursday July 29
12:30pm	Avenue Q \| Dracula, the Musical \| The Boy from Oz \| Wicked - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C
7:30pm	Frankenstein - Prospect Park, Brooklyn	info \| AIM C

Friday July 30
7:30pm	They Might Be Giants - Prospect Park, Brooklyn	info \| AIM C
Dusk	"Beetlejuice" - Pier 25	info \| AIM C

Monday August 2
Dusk	"Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde" - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C

Tuesday August 3
7:30pm	Orchestra - Central Park bandshell	info \| AIM C

Wednesday August 4
Dusk	Movie TBD - Socrates Sculpture Park, Astoria	info \| AIM C

Thursday August 5
12:30pm	Broadway Dances - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C

Friday August 6
Dusk	"Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory" - Pier 25	info \| AIM C

Monday August 9
Dusk	"Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C

Wednesday August 11
Dusk	Movie TBD - Socrates Sculpture Park, Astoria	info \| AIM C

Thursday August 12
12:30pm	Bare, a Pop Opera \| Chicago \| The Lion King \| Stomp - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C

Thursday August 19
12:30pm	The Donkey Show/The Karaoke Show \| Brooklyn the Musical \| Little Shop of Horrors \| Rent - Bryant Park	info \| AIM C

Wednesday August 25
Dusk	"Sleepy Hollow" - Pier 54	info \| AIM C

Bite Me!

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* The following post contains a gross amount of exclamation points and not-at-all-creative profanity. If my dad were to read this, I'm certain he would look at me over his glasses and say, "C.M."—he always calls me by my first and middle names when he says this line—"C.M., that isn't very ladylike, is it?" No, Dad, indeed it is not.

Please bear with me. I need to do this.

die, motherfucker!

Fuck you, you fucking motherfucker! You have been sucking my blood and irritating my skin for fucking months now! I fucking hate you! You crawl into my bed, into my shirt, up my pants, and fucking bite me! Fuck you! I've been sleeping dressed head to toe in this fucking humidity, with the A/C cranked, just so I can wake up without being entirely covered in itchy welts! And you still fucking bite my hands and feet! Now I'm taking a sleep aid so I can get more than three hours of shut-eye a night! You've made me so fucking paranoid! I look like a fucking disgusting freak, with red blotches all over my body, and scabs from where I scratched those fucking bites! Yeah, I'm real cute! No wonder I can't get a fucking date! Who'd want to date a chick whose fucking apartment is infested with your nastiness?! I've spent so much money on Raid and hydrocortizone! My doctor even put me on steroids to try to make my skin better! What the fuck! That shit is expensive, and I don't have money falling out of my wallet, you jerk!

And now it's going to cost me even more! I have to bag up all my shit and boil it all to get you fucking jackasses out of there! I have to take down the curtains and send out all my clothes out to be cleaned! I have to move all my furniture and flip up the bed! I have to remove all the electrical plates and caulk every fucking crack in this fucking apartment! What the fuck! May some fucking miracle help you if I have to throw away my mattress and get a new one, because I can't fucking afford it! And don't even start with me if I have to wrestle my feral cat into a fucking box just to get him out of your way!

Prepare to meet your maker, motherfucker! The Exterminator is finally coming, oh yes, he is coming! I'm doing all of this for him. And if he isn't the Messiah I am hoping for, you all better pray. This shit has gone on for far too fucking long for me to take it anymore! I have lost so many nights of sleep, paranoid about you disgusting fucks! You are all going to hell if I go to bed this weekend and get a fucking nibble anywhere on my white white ass!

Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die!

...

Hmm. I thought writing all that out would make me feel better. It didn't. I'm still pissed and I'm still stressed and I still want to cry.

*Psssst!* goes the near-empty can of Raid.

Just killed another one. Motherfucker!

*Psssst!*

Another! Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck!

Pictures of Bed Bug Bites | Next: Bed Bug Diary Part 1 >>

Bed Bug Diary: Part I

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«Previous: Bite Me | Pictures of Bed Bug Bites

May 1
I spend a lovely day out of the city. I start to notice what I think are incredibly itchy mosquito bites. Oh well. That’s what I get for romping in the woods.

May 18
I go to the doctor. I have a hacking cough, which turns out to be a respiratory infection, and what I came to call The Mystery Rash. The doctor doesn’t know what it is, but prescribes some $50 not-available-in-generic steroids to get rid of it. It helps the current welts to go down, but new ones keep appearing.

May 26
A letter has been slipped under our door. The building has become infested with bed bugs. The next morning, I leave on a plane to visit my family in the Midwest for five days. While away, The Mystery Rash disappears. When I return, so does the “rash.”

June 3
I see the superintendent on my way to work. He’s spraying the sidewalk in front of the building. I tell him I’m pretty sure my apartment has the bed bugs and will he sign us up to get an exterminator. He sort of nods, and I head on to work. I never follow up with him and I never hear from an exterminator.

June 11
Follow-up with the doctor. The respiratory infection is gone, but I still have the welts. The doctor is beside herself. She refers me to a dermatologist, but I never went. I knew what they were now.

June 16
I go down to the 2nd floor to the lady we give our rent to. I want to tell her about the bugs. She’s not in. The woman who answers the door tells me she’s on a trip to China for a few weeks.

June 20
I’ve become disheartened by my mild attempts to get an exterminator. I figure out that if I sleep wearing clothes head-to-toe (shirt tucked into my pants and socks pulled over my pant legs) and the A/C cranked to 73º, I don’t get bitten as much. My hands are covered in bites. I start to pretend this isn’t happening and it will all go away on its own. Somehow.

June 23
There’s a meeting in the building about the bedbugs. I decide to go to a fundraiser at the Museum of Sex with some girlfriends instead.

July 1
I make a Big Life Decision. I want to turn my life around. I’m sick of being unhappy and having a miserable, disgusting home life—a fraction of which included a certain insect problem. I get help for myself. I focus on the immediacy of my most pressing problem, which actually was not bedbugs. I’d get to that later.

I see my first bed bug, which coincides with a period of sleeplessness. Since then, I have not been able to sleep earlier than 3:30am (sometimes as late as 5am, and once 7am). The two or three times I fell asleep earlier was thanks to Tylenol PM, and it wasn't great sleep.

July 6
I chat with my roommate when I get home late one night. She said the upstairs neighbor, who is on the co-op board, came down to talk to us. The bed bug infestation began in the apartment below ours. She’s concerned about us because her apartment is infested. She works on our behalf to get the exterminator in here.

July 22
My roommate, who has been working at home while her office moves to a new location, is home to receive calls about the exterminator. He’s finally coming.

July 25
I start to do a lot of crying, overwhelmed with stress.

As part of the whole Get My Shit Together scheme, I finally complete a despised task that I’d been putting off for a month: laundry. I do seven loads. I fold and hang it all. I even pair my socks.

July 26
I read a letter that’s been delivered to us that includes instructions on how to prepare for bed bug extermination.

2) All sheets, blankets, fabric window treatments, tenant clothing etc. are to be removed and cleaned in hot water, or professionally dry-cleaned. …

Fuck me.

More crying.

July 27
I ask my boss if I can take a personal day. I tell her that I have a lot of cleaning to do and that it will put my mind at ease if I actually witness the extermination. She’s sympathetic. She once lived in an apartment infested with fleas.

July 28
With the help of kind words and hugs from friends, I calm down. I start thinking pragmatically about how I’m going to get all this done.

In 24 hours, all this bed bug business will be over. I hope. Just hang in there for 24 more hours.

Pictures of Bed Bug Bites | Next: Bed Bug Diary Part II»

Bed Bug Diary: Part II

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«Previous: Bed Bug Diary Part I | Pictures of Bed Bug Bites

8:45am
I look at myself in the mirror. I have about five welts on my neck. My neck! I haven't been bitten on the neck before. They must know the end is near.

10:15pm
I’m on the 7 train heading home. A man is loudly singing, "I love chicken, I hate crack." I have a package of 28 large black garbage bags with yellow ties. Should be plenty, I think. I have to bag all my clothes and all my personal effects. The idea of this makes my head spin. I just hope it ends up being worth it.

10:24pm
I've gotten $26 in quarters from the laundromat. There are laundry machines in my building, but no change machine. My purse is really heavy now. I have another $20 if I need to get more quarters, but that’s all I’ve got till the wee hours of Friday morning when I get paid.

10:55pm
In bagging my things, I've come across my one and only sex toy, which I thought had been lost during my move into this apartment last summer. I'm feeling quite cynical about all this cleaning/exterminating business and am dreading that the bugs will return; but if little good comes out of this, at least I have found my Silver Bullet! Hooray!

11:07pm
My roommate, who thankfully has never been bitten by bed bugs, is also cleaning up her room. She came in to tell me to turn on Seinfeld. In the episode airing, Jerry has a flea infestation caused by dirty neighbor Newman. How fitting.

1:49am
I think I'm done. I've watched Monty Python & the Holy Grail twice: once with the commentary by directors Terrys Gilliam & Jones and the other with commentary by Cleese, Idle and Palin.

My closets are bare, save freely-dangling hangers. All my furniture is squished into the middle of the room, away from the walls. (In fact, I’m sitting on a dresser with my legs up on the desk right now.) I've removed all the electrical plates. My things are all in plastic bags and piled on top of the crowded furniture. I labeled all of them with red “Hello my name is” tags I had leftover from my Marla Singer costume last Halloween. In the morning, I'll strip my bed and flip it up against the wall. I pray the exterminator determines that I do not have to throw it out.

Out of the box of 28 garbage bags, there is one left in the box.

I really hope the exterminator isn't a prick. I'm going to have lots of questions. Thankfully, Brady will be coming by in the morning to lend an extra set of hands for doing the laundry and a lot of desperately needed moral support.

I hope I've done everything right. I'm so worried about all this.

Um, I think I forgot to leave out pajamas for myself.

2:54am
I stop writing.

Pictures of Bed Bug Bites | Next: Bed Bug Diary Part III»

Bed Bug Diary: Part III

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«Previous: Bed Bug Diary Part II | Pictures of Bed Bug Bites

9:15am
I wake up naturally. No alarm. I've taken the day off work to witness the death and destruction of that which is the bane of my current existence. I roll over and check my phone. One voicemail. Brady is on her way.

10:12am
Brady and I flip the bed up against the wall. We take a foam mattress that I've been wanting to get rid of to the trash. On our way down, we run into my neighbor George. I ask him how his dog is, a cute old Corgie named Ginger. "No more dog," he says. He had to put her to sleep. "She was a good dog." At the curb, we see the super. I ask him if he knows what time the exterminator is supposed to be coming. He says he doesn't know. Not helpful.

11:34am
He's here! He's here! Exterminator Larry is here! And he's nice! He says I cleaned really well. I'm so relieved! I was worried I hadn't done enough, even though I really knocked myself out. Larry's glad the drawers are empty. He says most people didn't do that. He's exterminating all my infested neighbors today too. One of them has to leave for work at noon. I tell him he can go there first because I'm going to be around all day. When he steps out, I jump up and down. "I'm so happy! He's here! He's here! It's almost over!"

11:55am
"Hello?" Larry calls to me from my bedroom while Brady and I are in the living room organizing my laundry to take to the basement. "I think you're going to need to move your cat." My little one, Donnie the scaredy cat, is petrified under one of the radiators. I pull him out and he starts thrashing around. I let him go and he careens around the bookcases and holes himself under the nearest dresser. Poor guy. At least I didn't have to box him up. (My other cat, Ozzie? He's just fine. He's looking at everyone with his wide green eyes. What's going on? Is it time to eat? Scratch my chin!)

1:40pm
Brady has left to take care of her own business for the day. I'm so glad she was around for the morning. I'm on the bus to Home Depot where I'll buy caulk. I pass a car dealership, and I think of my friend Mike, who always helps his friends when they need to buy a car. In Home Depot, I find the caulk in the paint department, which makes me think of Fish, who always paints her room when she moves into a new apartment. On my way back, I pass a van that says, "Maggie's Paratransport," which reminds me of Eleanor, whose nickname for me is Maggie. On my way in, I see the super, and I think of Will, who, when I told him earlier about the super's un-helpfulness, said I should kick him in the nuts. A lot of you are on my mind. I feel my friends are with me today.

2:58pm
I just put in the first loads of laundry. In the basement, while loading the machines with bedding, I met a neighbor, Gloria. She was putting her two cats into a meeting room. She is being exterminated today, too. She sits down and we chat while I pour Tide and OxyClean into the wash. She's been crying over the amount of work that needs to be done; her husband hasn't helped her at all. I tell her I've been crying too. We compare welts, scabs and scars up and down our arms. I want to give her a hug, and I do. I think this weekend I'll go upstairs and knock on her door, see how she's doing.

Coming out of the elevator, I see Larry. He's been waiting for the super for over half an hour to let him into my next door neighbor's apartment to exterminate it. My opinion of the super is going down by the hour.

I'm going to caulk.

2:59pm
I don't have a caulking gun.

3:10pm
After searching the basement on my own, I find the super and ask if I can borrow his caulking gun. He says he doesn't have one. "Home Depot," he tells me. Thanks. He must be lying. How can a superintendent of a large apartment building not have a tool like a calking gun?

6:05pm
I've run out of quarters. I have no more money. I spent my last $20 on caulk, dryer sheets and batteries for my portable CD player. I'll do the rest of the wash and buy the calking gun tomorrow when I get paid. I make a cheeseburger, smoke a cigarette, take a shower, and lay down on the couch for what I hope will be a long nap.

7:43pm
I can't sleep on the couch. I get my roommate, who is home from work, to help me put my bed back together. I take a risk and get between the sheets wearing only a tank top and shorts. I haven't slept wearing so little in a long time.

3:24am
I wake up scratching my arm. Welts! ... I don't even have the words for it.

I felt my friends in my heart earlier, but right now I feel so very lonely. I have no tears left as I squirt Raid to kill three bedbugs I see on the wall.

Pictures of Bed Bug Bites | Next: Bed Bug Diary Part IV»

Bed Bug Diary: Part IV

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«Previous: Bed Bug Diary Part III | Pictures of Bed Bug Bites

10:37am
I try to call the building manager, Elliot, to tell him I've seen more bed bugs. He's not in. I'm told to try calling back later. I didn't say why I was calling.

12:05am
I call Elliot again. The woman who answers the phone says they're all out to lunch. I say I'll call back.

1:32pm
My coworker and I walk to the hardware store and I buy a caulking gun. It was only $3. We take a nice long lunch break at La Marca. I have the gazpacho.

3:37pm
I make another call to Elliot. The office is closed for the day.

7:49pm
I stop by the laundromat on my way home from work. As I'm shoving fistfuls of quarters into my purse, a girl in a pink smock comes up behind me and starts speaking to me in Spanish. She's not happy. I've gotten away with this so many times before, it hadn't even occurred to me that I should have gone to the bank earlier in the day. She makes me give back the quarters and in exchange for a twenty and a ten. No laundry tonight.

10:23pm
I'm standing on top of my dresser. I raise my arms, the caulking gun in my left hand, and I shout, "Die! Die! Die!" A little dramatic, I guess.

12:46am
All the furniture is back in place. I've swept and Swiffered the floor. I take a shower and do one of my yoga tapes. I feel great. I think having caulked all the cracks in my room will curb these bugs a lot. I climb into my fresh bed.

5:01am
I wake up. I apply Cortizone to the welts on my elbow. Two bugs, fat and red with my blood, crawl out from under my pillow. I kill a total of three.

I look up the pest control company's number online. "We receive messages quickly and will get back to you soon," the voicemail says. I leave a message. I should have just called them yesterday.

It's getting light out.

Pictures of Bed Bug Bites | Next: Bed Bug Diary Part V»

Experimental

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This posting is a community experiment that tests how a meme, represented by this blog posting, spreads across blogspace, physical space and time. It will help to show how ideas travel across blogs in space and time and how blogs are connected. It may also help to show which blogs (and aggregation sites) are most influential in the propagation of memes. The dataset from this experiment will be public, and can be located via Google (or Technorati) by doing a search for the GUID for this meme (below).

The original posting for this experiment is located at: Minding the Planet (Permalink) --- results and commentary will appear there in the future.

Please join the test by adding your blog (see instructions, below) and inviting your friends to participate -- the more the better. The data from this test will be public and open; others may use it to visualize and study the connectedness of blogspace and the propagation of memes across blogs.

The GUID for this experiment is:
as098398298250swg9e98929872525389t99
87898tq98wteqtgaq62010920352598gawst
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To add your blog to this experiment, copy this entire posting to your blog, and then answer the questions below, substituting your own information, below, where appropriate. Other than answering the questions below, please do not alter the information, layout or format of this post in order to preserve the integrity of the data in this experiment (this will make it easier for searchers and automated bots to find and analyze the results later).

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(1) I found this experiment at URL: Dreams and Memories

(2) I found it via Dreams and Memories RSS feed through Bloglines.

(3) I posted this experiment at URL: A Picture of Me - Extras

(4) I posted this on date (day/month/year): 03/08/04 (August 3, 2004)

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Bed Bug Diary: Part V

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«Previous: Bed Bug Diary Part IV | Pictures of Bed Bug Bites

July 31
I decide not to finish the laundry. I want the exterminator to come back, and it’s pointless to fill my closet and drawers if I’m just going to empty them again. I leave another message for the exterminator. I find more cracks in the walls and caulk them. On my way home from Central Parking, I play a game on my cell phone, Spider Hunter. I get a new high score. I take this as a good omen.

August 2
While waiting on the high platform for the 7 train to work, my cell phone rings. “Hi, this is Brian from pest control. Sorry we didn’t get back to you sooner. We were all away at a training this weekend.” At least they called. “We’re actually not the company that was hired to do the bed bug extermination.” I had gotten the number off a notice about cockroaches in the building elevator. “Oh, I’m sorry,” I said. “This is embarrassing.” He tells me that he knows some other people in building management if I needed more numbers to get in touch with people. He seemed interested, so I told him I’d been exterminated and I was still seeing bugs. “I’ve read,” I continued, “that it can take more than one extermination to get rid of them.” “Yes, that’s true,” Brian confirmed.

August 3
Stepping into the morning sun and putting on my headphones, I ran into Gloria, the neighbor I had met in the laundry room. She isn’t seeing any more bugs and was concerned for me that I was. “You have to call, you have to call,” she implored.

I call Elliot the building manager. “You can’t work through me on this,” he tells me. But I don’t have the number of the exterminator! “I’ll give it to you,” he says. I call the number he gave me. The exterminator’s operator tells me they’ll call back with an appointment. Yeah right, I think. This whole thing takes so much diligence, which is something I’m not good at. To my surprise, they call me back at my work number in the afternoon to tell me they’re sending someone tomorrow. Hooray! So now I’m home, bagging my belongings yet again, excited for tomorrow’s extermination.

Thursday morning, I leave for a week-long vacation in the hurricane-swept Carolinas. I’m so happy for many things: that the exterminator is coming back while I’m still in town; that I’ll have a week of wonderful sleep in a clean bed; the sun & seawater will heal my irritated skin; and I’ll spend time with my family—especially my brother, who I don’t get to see as often as I’d like.

My office smoking buddy said to me today, “It’s probably a great thing that you’re going on vacation right after this extermination.” No kidding. “The bed bugs will be dying and looking for nourishment—and you won’t be there for them to get it!” That makes some sense. I hope she’s right.

Pictures of Bed Bug Bites | Next: Bed Bug Diary Part VI»

Bed Bug Diary: Part VI

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«Previous: Bed Bug Diary Part V | Pictures of Bed Bug Bites

August 11
The second leg of my flight home from vacation is cancelled, a 3:15pm flight from Charlotte to La Guardia. I finish a book, wander around the terminal, and make small talk with various colorful characters at the airport bars, the only place I could smoke cigarettes. I get on the next open flight at 9:55pm. I finally make it home around 1am, totally beat. It’s been a week since I’ve slept in my own bed. I crawl into it and soon feel a familiar itching. I toss off the sheet—I’m sleeping on a bare bed with a single sheet around me, since all of my other bedding is quarantined. I find five bedbugs and kill them. I don’t fall asleep until after 6am. I get an hour and a half of rest.

August 12
I call the exterminator. “Hang on,” the receptionist tells me. “My boss wants to speak with you.” What’s this about? “Are there any bugs on the monitors?” the boss asks me. Since the first extermination, I’ve had little white roach traps strewn about my apartment. They’re used to monitor where bed bugs are in the room, to help them find the source of the infestation. “No, they aren’t any in the monitors,” I tell him. I think the bed bugs are too smart to crawl in them. “Hmmmm” the boss says. “Do you have any of the bugs you killed?” You think I’m making this up?! I’m not doing this to annoy you! “I can probably pull them out of the trash, yeah.” “OK,” he says, “Do that. You’re going to hate me, but you’re going to have to wash everything again.” “You know, at first, that was really bad, but now I don’t care. I’ll do it. I just want the bugs gone.” “Sam will be by tomorrow between 10am and 1pm.” “Great, thanks.”

August 13
Sam, the same extremely nice exterminator who came for treatment #2, is here. I had flipped the bed up against the wall, as always, and when I did, I saw traces of bed bugs on the boxspring, which I’d never noticed before. Sam douses the boxspring with chemicals until it is soaking wet. I ask him if I have to throw it away; I show him the vinyl covers I bought to put over it (on the advice of Joey, a recovering bed bug victim). Sam says the cover should do the trick. When he leaves, he says, “Nothing personal, but I hope I never see you again.” Ditto, my friend.

Later that night, I wrangle the vinyl covers onto the boxspring and mattress. At bedtime, I realize I have nothing left to sleep on. All that’s left in the linen closet are fitted sheets. I open the sealed plastic bag that has my comforter inside. A bed bug sits right on top. I freak and shove it back into the bag. I scurry around my room, digging for quarters in change jars and purses. I lay the down comforter on the cement floor of the basement laundry room. I go over every inch, killing about five bed bugs I find crawling on it. I wash it twice in hot water.

I’m itchy. So itchy. It’s freaking me out. In the elevator, on my way to move the laundry from the washer to dryer, I pull up my shirt and look at my tummy, a particularly itchy spot. Oh! I’m itching in all the places I got a little bit of sunburn! Hooray! As Emma put it, never did sunburn feel so good.

Back in my room, I decide the chair has to go. I have been bitten on the thighs and triceps while sitting in it. There are too many places within the seat that bed bugs could be. With surprisingly little emotion, I slide it down the hall, squeeze it into the elevator and take it down to the basement where large trash is to be left. I’m so numb. I don’t know what to feel about this anymore.

I go to bed, with very fresh sheets and blankets. And a teeny tiny bit of hope.

August 14
I wake up without any bites. No bed bug sightings.

August 15
I wake up without any bites. No bed bug sightings.

August 16
I wake up without any bites. No bed bug sightings.

August 17
I wake up without any bites. No bed bug sightings.
I celebrate 50 days of sobriety.

As promising as this sounds, I’m not ready to declare total victory just yet. As I’ve told a few people in the last few days, I think this whole experience is going to scar me for a really long time. Everywhere I go, my eyes focus on dark spots on walls, wondering if it’s a bed bug. Every itch I get makes me panic. My hair is falling out. My bed isn’t the safe haven it should be, and I prolong bedtime for as long as possible. I've been bitten by these vampire insects since May. This anxiety will last for a long time.

However, I do want to shout out to my best supporters through this whole ordeal. Most notably, Emma. Girl, you have been there for me every single night through that worst time of day, bedtime. Your support, encouragement, and sympathy have meant so much to me. This has been a lonely ordeal, and you have kept me company. I don’t know how to thank you. I also want to thank Will and Chelonia for going above and beyond the call of duty. Thank you so much. And to all my friends and people who have left comments—you!—thanks. I know this is all I can talk about lately, but it’s incredibly consuming—emotionally and physically—, and I appreciate all your love and patience. You’re the best.

*Pictures of some of my bed bug bites
*Google: Bed bugs
*Epilogue: I Said “Fuck” 7 Times in The New Yorker

Bed Bug Bite Pictures & Success Story from New York

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Pictures and photos of bedbug (bed bug) bites and welts.

2004

In 2004, I suffered a bed bug infestation that lasted approximately 4 months. I had several treatments from a professional exterminator and followed all of their instructions as best I could. It was one of the most stressful experiences of my life, and my heart goes out to sufferers who are reading this. Hang in there!

*Prologue: Bite Me!
*Bed Bug Diary: Part I
*Bed Bug Diary: Part II
*Bed Bug Diary: Part III
*Bed Bug Diary: Part IV
*Bed Bug Diary: Part V
*Bed Bug Diary: Part VI
*Epilogue: I Said “Fuck” 7 Times in The New Yorker

bed bug bites photo

2007

In 2007, I suffered an infestation of bed bugs. I do not believe this to be a reinfestation from the 2004 incident. In 2007, I was living in a different bedroom (a bedroom that was not effected in 2004), and it had been far longer than 18 months since my last infestation, which is the amount of time they say a bed bug can live without eating. Also, my entire apartment building had a problem with bed bugs, so it wasn't entirely surprising that the building, where hundreds of people lived, was never fully rid of the bed bugs.

Because I knew what I was looking for, I identified the bed bug problem quickly and suffered very little in comparison to the 2004 ordeal.

*Bed Bugs: Then and Now

picture of bed bug bite

*The Bedbug Blog
*Bedbugger

How to Read Blogs via RSS/XML

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Reading blogs this way is so much easier, and I want to show you how to do it, if you don't already know how. (If you already do, carry on with your bad self. Or skip to the tips below. Maybe you'll read something new.)

Checking in on your favorite blogs is so much easier this way; you'll wonder how you ever did without it. Basically, you can go to one place—one application or one web site—and read all your favorite blogs, instead of having to go to 20 (30? 50? 100?) web sites to see if they've posted something new. You log into your RSS reader and it delivers to you all the new posts.

There are two kinds of RSS readers: a software application or a website. I prefer to use a web site: No downloads to further crud up my computer, I can access my blogs from anywhere, and it's one bookmark—one bookmark I click at least once an hour. If not more.

I'm going to give instructions to use Bloglines, my RSS reader of choice. I think it's easy to use, reads all syndication forms (RSS 1.0, RSS 2.0 and Atom—is there more?) and they're always adding new features. And it's free. I recommend it. But I don't blame you if you want to use something else. Here is a list of RSS readers to choose from.

How to Use Bloglines

1. Create an account. Confirm your registration by clicking on the link sent to you by email.

2. Start subscribing to blogs. Go to the tab called "My Feeds." On the right side, just below where it says "My Feeds" is a link called "Add." A page will load on the left. Put in the URL of the web site you want to subscribe to. Or, if the blog has a link that says "Syndicate this site" or an orange XML button, you can use that link. After you click "Subscribe," a list of "Available Feeds" will be displayed. If there is just one, choose your "Options" and click "Subscribe." If there is more than one "Available Feed," preview them to see which you want, click the checkbox of the one you want, choose your "Options" and then "Subscribe." Your page will reresh and a link with the blog name will appear in the right frame.

3. Read your blogs. In the right frame will be a list of your blogs and folders. When there is something new to read, the link will be bold and have a number beside it, indicating the number of new posts in that blog or folder.

4. Bookmark http://bloglines.com/myblogs.

That's all there is to it. There are links to rearrange your blogs, unsubscribe, search and more. As you use Bloglines more, you'll figure out how to use these features easily.

There are features in Bloglines that I don't use (My Blog, Clippings, Share), but maybe you will. Play with them and let me know if they're useful.

General and Bloglines Tips

Full Post vs. Excerpt: There are different versions of RSS that determine how posts are displayed. Some posts show only the first paragraph or a few sentences. Some show the full post. Some will include links embedded in the post, and some will show graphics in the post. Some don't. For abbreviated posts that catch your interest, the link to the full post is very clearly in the heading. If you subscribe to a blog that offers more than one feed, in Bloglines you can preview the feed and see if one is in a more likeable format, and then you can choose the one you like more.

Folders: In Bloglines, you can set up folders for your blogs to sit in. I have mine organized in folders with names like Always (as in, I always read every post from those blogs), Sometimes, Gossip, News, Work. When the folders are collapsed, the folder will be highlighted with the number of new posts inside the folder. So when you click on the folder, it'll display all the new posts inside, without having to click on each highlighted blog. I find this to be very efficient.

Keep New: When reading a post in Bloglines, there is a little checkbox in the lower right that says "Keep New." If you come across the post that you want to read, but don't have time, you can check the box and it will still be there later.

Who Is Reading? In Bloglines, in the dark blue bar above the blog title name, you'll see a link that says "X subscribers." If you click on that link you can see who else is subscribed to that blog, and click through to see what other blogs they like. You can keep your subscriptions private so no one else can see what you're reading, if you so choose. (I so choose.)

More Than Blogs: I don't read just blogs via RSS. Many web sites now offer syndication of their content. I read CNN and Slate via RSS. I get Netflix New Releases and my daily Dilbert comic. I get IMDb news and New York listings on Upcoming. In Bloglines, you can search for blogs by keyword. Maybe your favorite site has a feed or two. Or more.

Your Blog: Can your blog be read via RSS? If you're using Moveable Type, then you most likely are; it seems standard with the installation. I think it's standard with LiveJournal and Typepad, but I couldn't really say that for sure. If you use Blogger, it's a feature you have to turn on. Blogger users, from your dashboard, click to your blog and then go to the Settings tab. Click Site Feed. To make your blog accessible to RSS readers, change Publish Site Feed to Yes. Below that, you have the option of the format your feed will be in (Short or Full). Take your pick.

I wonder if anyone read all this ...

More Resources

* CNET: News You Choose
* RSS Gaining Momentum
* Feed Readers / News Aggregators for Linux, Mac and Windows
* Bloglines Help & FAQ

Do you read blogs via RSS? Do you have any tips to share?

Shop BN on Friday December 3, 2004

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Print out this voucher and bring it to Barnes & Noble on W 82nd St and Broadway on Friday, December 3, 2004 between 9am and 9pm.

A percentage of your purchase will be donated to MS 256, a New York City public school where my friend is a teacher. They can use all the help they can get for books and supplies.

Come on. You're going to get some holiday presents at Barnes & Noble anyway, why not help a school while you're at it?

Blogger Party

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Saturday, March 26, 2005
8pm
Manhattan Lounge
1720 2nd Ave
(between E 88th and 89th)

Let Karol and I know if you're coming! (You can leave a comment here.)

And help get the word out by putting this button on your blog! Thanks!

Copy this code:

I Said “Fuck” 7 Times in The New Yorker

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THE NEW YORKER | THE TALK OF THE TOWN
DEPT. OF ENTOMOLOGY: NIGHT VISITORS
Issue of 2005-04-04 | Posted 2005-03-28

Life is, like, so unfair sometimes. Case in point: Alexis Swerdloff and her friends Laura Perciasepe, Avni Bhatia, and Anna Arkin-Gallagher, a quartet of eye-on-the-main-chance nouvelles Yale graduates who late last summer set up housekeeping in the East Village, in a four-bedroom apartment that they really, really liked, but then realized that they liked a lot less when, not long after they moved in, all were viciously assaulted by bedbugs. . . .

The roommates considered starting a bedbug Web log, then discovered that one already existed, the handiwork of a young woman, a recovering bedbug victim, who seemed to have been even more aggrieved than they were. (“Please bear with me. I need to do this. Fuck you, you fucking motherfucker! You have been sucking my blood and irritating my skin for fucking months now! I fucking hate you! You crawl into my bed, into my shirt, up my pants, and fucking bite me! ... Prepare to meet your maker, motherfucker! The Exterminator is finally coming, oh yes, he is coming!”)

Not my finest moment and not the best choice of words, but there you have it.

For better or worse, my name will never be attached to all those dirty, dirty words.

*F-Bomb Factory: Bite Me!
*The Whole Disgusting Tale: Bed Bug Diaries

*Thank you Deb!

Bed Bugs: Then and Now

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My name is Caryn and I suffered bedbugs twice in my life, in 2004 and 2007. I chronicled my 2004 experience on a blog, and I have information below contrasting my two experiences.

I am pleased that bedbugs have gotten all of the media attention that they have in the last several years. I'm happy to help offered advice to a lot of suffering people. That means a great deal to me.
I did eventually move away from that apartment and haven't since experienced bedbugs. But I'm still on alert. They have been reports of bedbugs in my current area, still in NYC.
I now maintain both this site that you're reading now, which is an adaptation of my original 2004 diary posts of my bedbug experience, and How to Kill Bedbugs, a reference site with information for bedbug sufferers.
In 2011, I appeared briefly in a television episode called The Invaders: Bed Bug Doomsday, a show on the National Geographic Wild channel. You can see me at 1:28 in this clip.
- Caryn, July 2011

Bed Bugs: 2004 vs 2007

Diagnosing Bed Bug Bites

2004: I thought I had a rash. Maybe an allergy? I went to the doctor who gave me steroids. The steroids made the bites I had feel better, but I kept getting new ones. The doctor suspected insect bites on the second visit, but never mentioned bed bugs. I eventually got notification from my building that there were bed bugs here; without that notice, I'm not sure how long it would have taken me to figure out what was wrong.

2007: Over the past three years, I've had a few bug bites. But nothing that was like a bedbug bite. Saturday morning I got a big one. I recognized it immediately: irregularly shaped, itchy like a mosquito bite but worse. I took a picture. I got a few more on Sunday night, and I felt nearly certain I had bed bugs again.

Tip from Caryn:++ My anti-itch relief of choice is hydrocortisone cream. I keep it handy and apply it as soon as I start itching.

Diagnosing Bed Bugs

2004: I got a letter from my building saying that bed bugs have been found here. That explained the strange symptoms I'd been experiencing for several weeks already. I didn't see my first actual bed bug many more weeks later.

2007: Sunday night, 36 hours after my first bed bug bites, I caught a bug. I knew what I had. I saved it and put it in a plastic bag to show the exterminator if he or she asks for it.

Tip from Caryn: If you think you have bed bugs, look for irregularly-shaped bites to appear only on the parts of your body that are exposed while you sleep or sit. Save a bug carcass in case your exterminator or landlord wants to see it.

Securing an Appointment With an Exterminator

2004: My first inquiry with the building superintendent about an appointment with an exterminator was on June 3, 2004. I didn't get through to make an appointment until July 22, which took roommates and networking with neighbors, and the exterminator arrived on July 29, 2004.

2007: I made my first call on Monday, February 19, 2007, President's Day. The office was closed that day. I called again on Tuesday, February 20, 2007, and left a message with a secretary. An exterminator called later in the day, and asked whether I wanted someone to come by on Thursday, Friday or Saturday. (I chose Saturday.)

Tip from Caryn: I was lazy the first time and put off making phone calls. All that time, the infestation just got worse. If you are a procrastinator, do try to overcome it for this. It'll all be over faster if you act quickly.

Preparation for Extermination

2004: Empty all of the closets, dressers and drawers. Bag all belongings. Wash all clothing, bed linens, and window treatments in hot water. Strip all of the beds down to the mattress. Cry, cry, cry.

2007: Empty all of the closets, dressers and drawers. Bag all belongings. Wash all clothing, bed linens, and window treatments in hot water. Strip all of the beds down to the mattress. Cry.

Tip from Caryn: I really didn't want to hear that I'd have to do all this for what I estimate to be a small infestation, but the exterminator is right. By doing all of it and being thorough the first time, we'll have more chance of success. Follow your exterminator's advice to the best of your ability.

Tip from Caryn: Some people are big advocates of throwing away your possibly infested possessions. I do agree that stuff that definitely has bed bugs inside it should probably be thrown away. (I threw away a chair that I reupholstered myself in 2004.) But I think furniture can be saved. I didn't throw away my mattress in 2004, and have slept on it for 2.5 years without bed bug bites—and I still haven't. In 2007, I have only been bitten while sitting on my couch. Ask your exterminator whether your furniture can be kept or whether they think you need to get rid of it, especially if you can't afford to replace an essential.

Second and Third Exterminations

2004: From the little information I could find about bed bugs on the Internet at the time, I learned that it was probably going to take more than one extermination. But I couldn't find a single story of someone who had successfully beaten bed bugs and how they did it. (Which was largely my inspiration for documenting my own story.) So I could only guess. I was given a hard time about getting them to come second and third times. They needed to see proof that I still had bed bugs.

2007: In my first conversation with the exterminator, he explained that they would be sending someone three times: a thorough first extermination, a lighter follow-up one week later, and then a final extermination along the baseboards three weeks after the second visit.

Tip from Caryn: I strongly recommend getting an exterminator instead of trying to fight bed bugs yourself.

Paying for the Exterminator

2004: The first notice we got from the building said that apartment owners would be responsible for the cost of exterminations. This seemed ridiculous to me, even though I don't own my apartment. A few weeks later, the building management took responsibility, and I passed my receipts to them.

2007: In my initial phone call with the exterminator, I asked whether the building would be paying for these treatments. He said yes, it's all being taken care of.

Caryn's Photographic Technology

2004: Webcam. Only took a few pictures on one day because I wanted my mother, who lives hundreds of miles away, to see what I was taking myself to the doctor for.

2007: Digital camera, my second one. Posted photos with a Flickr pro account. Took pics of the first bites I suspected to be bedbugs. Figuring I was being paranoid, I thought about blogging the photo with the title "Worrisome."
They're Back

For those who are disheartened that bed bug sufferers aren't being listened to, I hope this illustrates that progress is being made. In my experience, building owners are being more responsive and take bed bugs more seriously. The pest control professionals have come a long way in their systemization of treating bed bugs. And when we're all more educated, bed bug problems can be more quickly diagnosed and thoroughly treated.

I have a lot of hope that my problem will be dealt with as efficiently as can ever be expected from a bed bug problem. Certainly, I anticipate a lot less emotional and psychological upheaval, which is a combination of my own personal growth in the last few years as well as the kinds of improvements you can see here.

I know there is a lot of advice out there about bed bugs now. As an apartment renter, I strongly recommend that if you get bed bugs, call professional exterminators to help you get rid of the problem instead of tackling it yourself. Your landlord or building management should foot the bill, and the exterminators know more about this than we do. If you are a homeowner, I realize that the expense may be prohibitive, and I don't fault you for exploring other options. But I still think a professional can do a better job than someone toiling on his or her own.

++Disclaimer: All Tips from Caryn are my amateur opinion. I am not a pest control expert. I am just a woman in New York who has had bed bugs and successfully got rid of them. I realize my advice may be dubious considering I am experiencing a re-infestation, so take it all with a grain of salt.

*Pictures of Bed Bug Bites

How To Get Rid Of Bedbugs

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One of the first questions you might ask your self when dealing with Bedbugs is, How to get rid of bedbugs? What are they would be the next question.
Bedbug adults are wingless, oval flattened, reddish brown in color, they look striped in appearance from the Microscopic hairs. Or a banded type appearance. Remember this when you want to know how to get rid of bedbugs. And regardless of what you may have heard, they can be seen with the naked eye.Their size range is from one eight of an inch to one quarter of an inch.
They are a small insect that is nocturnal (they come out at night). That is the time they particularly like to come out and feed. Guess what? You can be their food source.
Bedbugs are blood feeding insects, their food of choice seems to be humans and other warm blooded hosts. Being they come out at night usually close to dawn, And that is the time they particularly like to feed. Guess what? You can be their food source. That means they like to feed while you may be sleeping. They can usually do their feeding in about an hour. This does not mean they cannot feed at other times, they can. And will venture out when the need to feed is there.
They can detect the presence of carbon dioxide, and warmth of the body, Bedbugs will crawl out and pierce the skin with one tube, and they then inject some anesthetics and anticoagulants, then with the other tube, they will withdraw the blood from the hosts, and return to their hiding place.
How do they get into or invade the home or premises? One of the problems in this day and time of traveling from different countries it is common thing for bedbugs to thrive. Many people associate the infestation of bedbugs with dirt and filth. This is not necessarily true, they do not live on waste and trash, therefore clutter and areas that are not disturbed is more in line with their choice of habitat.
Because bedbugs live off of warm bloodied hosts, they like to reside in cracks and crevices and out of the way areas where they cannot be found, but they prefer being close to their food source. The folds of mattresses, bedding, boxes, crates any of the things in and around the home that offer secluded undisturbed areas.
If you want to know how to get rid of bedbugs, determine if you really have bedbugs. Looking at the bite or the results of the bite will not necessarily reveal the source of the bite. Bedbug bites can resemble the bite of other insects, such as mosquitoes.
How to get rid of bed bugs I think the first step is to try and determine just how we got them. This is where your detective work can come into play. Think back and see if you have received any boxes, bedding, including used mattresses from a friend or used furniture store.
Remember bedbugs like to hide in bed frames, head boards, and folds of the mattress. Boxes, dressers,chests, are also a good place to inspect. A good way to get rid of bedbugs is to simply be proactive. One of the big push now days is IPM (Integrated Pest Management).
Don't be to fast to introduce chemical into your home, bedding, ect. Try the above firstRemember these things.

Determine type of insect
Inspect sleeping area
clean, remove boxes, clutter and ect

Remember if you cannot determine if you have a Bedbug infestation, or how to get rid of bedbugs, ask for help, from reliable source such as a Entomologist or a Certified Pest control Operator.John Shelton cpco

How To Get Rid Of Bedbugs 2

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It seems like the bedbug problem is just getting worse by the moment. Just recently on the news an family moved into a new apartment and the first thing they encountered was a bedbug infestation.

I noticed the news pictures and the home seemed to be very cluttered, I know one thing if you have a lot of clothes and different stuff laying around, it will be even harder to get rid of the bed bugs. Ask Orkin, Terminex or any of the other larger pest control company's, I almost guarentee you they will all tell you that you need to get everything up and off the floor,bedding. Remember in the first article, I mentioned that how clean you were wasn't a sign of why you have bedbugs.

The one thing that you must know is that to treat for them it is necessary to make sure everything is picked up off the floor and bedding, I also mentioned that one of the ways on how to get rid of bedbugs is to be proactive. But if you are getting more than one or two bites then I would think the next step is to call Orkin,Terminex or Truly Nolen, these guys are the big boys of pest control.

There are some very good professional small individual companies around, just make a few phone calls and get some opinions.

In your quest of how to get rid of bedbugs,you can make the effort to get to do it yourself, The best way is call some of the companies in your area, and get advise, and see what they have to offer.

Bedbug Prevention

The following steps should be followed to reduce bedbug infestations in the home.

1. Reduce clutter around the home
2. Seal cracks and crevices
3. Check all second hand beds, bedding and furniture
4. Examine the bed and headboard area for signs of bedbugs when traveling
5. Keep luggage off the floor
6. Wash, dry or freeze an clothing bought at a garage sale or second hand stores right away.
By far the best method of getting rid of bedbugs is insecticide

When I mentioned the family who had moved into a real infestation, chances are if they had just done some inspection they might of spotted the critters and life would be a lot easier.
Good luck on your quest of how to get rid of bedbugs.

Bedbug Problem Keeps Getting Worse

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How To Kill Bed bugs

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Bedbugs

How To Get Rid of Bedbugs. Or how to kill Bedbugs is still a real problem in most countries, and the United States, knowing how to identify, prevent, or kill them. Learning how to get rid bedbug infestation is a real learning curve. Getting rid of bedbugs is quite a fight, but the fear that comes along with an infestation has grown even harder to get rid of. Getting rid of bedbugs is costly due to the amount of time and the products used for treatment, more than one treatments are often necessary. With the replacement of furniture and bedding. Safe products are available that are as effective as DDT, but getting rid of bedbugs is not for amateurs. Many people assume that getting rid of bedbugs is as easy as a quick pest treatment.

Facts

Bedbugs are more of a nuisance than a health risk.
They have been around since ancient times and are mentioned in Medieval European texts and in classical Greek writing.
Bedbugs sleep during the day and come out to feed at night.
These bugs, the experts say, come from international travel which has been on the increase.
By setting your luggage on the floor you're percentage of you taking some of the critters home with you increases dramatically.
Control on how to kill bedbugs

In the 1950s, thanks largely to the now-banned pesticide DDT. Pest control companies can say bedbug infestations have escalated dramatically over the past decade. Then professional pest control companies would come in and treat the premises, often several times before eliminating all the bugs. It is harder to fight bed bugs when you don’t have lots of money for pricey repeat pest control treatments and large plastic bags, and tons of repeat laundry loads.
During the treatment your pest control technician should:Conduct a detailed inspection of the infested areas.
Before engaging any pest controller on how to get rid of bedbugs, we recommend that you check to see that a Free follow up Service Period has been specified because bedbug treatment most often requires multiple follow up visits.
Any of the company techs who say they don't need a follow up. Get rid of them.

By combining your efforts on how to get rid of bedbugs or how to kill bedbugs with a professional Pest Control Company, your chances of eradicating any bedbug problem increase dramatically. For more information on bed bugs call your local Pest control company. Any company should be able to give you information on the do's and the don't s of bedbug elimination.

If you have the time you should contact you local DIY (do it yourself) store for the right procedures and types of chemicals available to you as an inexperienced pest person.
Good luck
John