Not WASPs, wasps. Them little flying bags of venom with my name on all of their “To do” lists.
I work in the trades so, during the months of fairly decent weather, I’m outside a lot. Painting, putting up new siding, building decks, enclosing patios… you get the picture.
Well, whenever any wasps come around, they tend to land on me. And, as could be expected, they sting me at times.
This hurts.
But, it happens so often, I’m almost used to it. Strangly enough, I almost never get bit by mosquitos. Go figure.
When working, I apply deoderant but not any cologne. And, of course, I sweat when it’s hot. Shoulders and fore arms seem to be the most liked places. (I routinely wear sleeveless tees.)
So… if you know any wasps… ask them to stop it already, okay?
I have a somewhat unfounded theory - as yet unresearched (by me at least) that being stung by wasps somehow chemically marks you as ‘enemy’ and that this causes other wasps to pester/sting you.
I thought hornets were red. The hornet that Payton’s Servant so kindly provided appears to be red and yellow. (And e-v-i-l, of course.)
If it makes you feel any better, NoClueBoy, I’ve never been stung by anything with a detachable stinger. No bees, wasps, hornets, etc. Nope. Just always managed to avoid them.
Oh wait! So sorry. That probably doesn’t make you feel better at all.
Well, if it’s any consolation, it’s only through massive fear and paranoia that I’ve managed it so far, so really think how much better off you are now that you know what it’s like.
[sub]Me, I’ll just be hiding inside, screaming “IS IT GONE YET? OH MY GOD, DID YOU KILL IT? WHERE’S THE HIVE? SOMEBODY KILL IT! I’M NOT GOING OUT THERE TIL IT’S GONE! OMIGOD!”[/sub]
I have a bee phobia… Anytime I get ANYTHING buzzing near me I freak. I’ve been painting outside and jumped off ladders to get away from a curious hornet.
Of course, I’m allergic to boot and could go into anaphylaxtic shock if I get stung. This phobia started when I was a child and got stung dozens of times at once… I went into shock then as well, but not anaphylaxtic. It wasn’t until I was a teen that I got stung again, and one sting was enough to send me to the emergency room.
I’ve since had allergy testing done and I’m not allergic to 90% of the stinging insects in Canada (the common ones like honeybees, mudwasps, yellowjackets,etc. which is all they test for) but the allergic reaction was from a sting in Boston, so maybe it was some exotic superwasp or something. My Medic Alert medallion just specifies “Stinging Insects”.
Oh, and Audrey only bees have barbed detachable stingers. Hornets and wasps have smooth stingers.
I have an intense bee/wasp/hornet phobia (just looking at that ghastly picture in Payton’s link makes me shudder). I have managed to avoid most of them, and their presence is one reason I tend to stay indoors (this and the fact that I just don’t like being outside in the sun on hot days). They are the worst insects on this planet (yes, I know bees make honey and that’s good, but dammit, why are they so damn aggressive and dangerous?!) Most other biting/stinging insects don’t fly around and come towards you faster than you can run from them, and they usually don’t attack en masse (except perhaps fire ants, which, thankfully, don’t fly).
In the fourth grade on the first day of school I was caught in a swarm of yellow jackets. Over the summer a yellow jacket nest had appeared in a group of trees on the playground where we liked to play. Several classmates and I got stung when the bastards started swarming around. We were just minding our own business and then suddenly we heard this loud humming and buzzing sound, which by then it was too late as we were surrounded by hundreds of these horrid things. I only got stung twice but others weren’t quite so lucky.
Last spring I was putting my garbage can away when out of nowhere a wasp came flying towards me. I deflected him with my hand as he was going towards my face. He started to sting me as there was a small wound and a small swollen circle on my hand, but I knocked him to the ground before he could terrorize me any more. I delightfully watched him writhe around and try to pick himself up off the ground. After deciding that he was suffering enough I put him out of his misery and stepped on him.
And then there’s killer bees. They haven’t made it this far north… yet.
Same here. Being attacked by a swarm several years ago (when I had my one-year-old in my arms) brought on that phobia. Now when they get near me, or I hear that buzzing near my ears and hair, I go into a cold sweat, start shaking and feel like crying.
I live for spring and summer to finally arrive, but I do wish bees weren’t part of the package. I’m trying so hard not to pass my fear off onto my kids.
I’m not scared of bees. I like bees. I mean, I don’t want them around me, but I won’t panic–I’ll just stay still until it goes away, or make a slight swat if they don’t.
Wasps/Hornets on the other hand…::shudders::. They scare the crapitty crap out of me. We had them in our dorm room this fall; this was the only time I ever went up to a male, gave the pleading look, and said, “please kill this insect for me.” Not my proudest hour. I think it’s that wasps like to make nests in places where I tend to stick my hand. I’ve never come upon an occupied nest, but just touching an empty one reminds me of what might’ve happened had Madam Wasp been home.
I hate bees. I’ve been stung three times. Each time, I just stood there and left them alone, and the little bastards stung me each time. So all stinging insects die around me. Bumblebees, honeybees, wasps, I don’t care.
Main Entry: wasp
1 : any of numerous social or solitary winged hymenopterous insects (especially families Sphecidae and Vespidae) that usually have a slender smooth body with the abdomen attached by a narrow stalk, well-developed wings, biting mouthparts, and in the females and workers an often formidable sting, and that are largely carnivorous and often provision their nests with caterpillars, insects, or spiders killed or paralyzed by stinging for their larvae to feed on – compare BEE
Main Entry: hor·net
: any of the larger social wasps (family Vespidae) – compare YELLOW JACKET
Main Entry: yellow jacket
1 : any of various small yellow-marked vespid wasps (especially genus Vespula) that commonly nest in the ground and can sting repeatedly and painfully
So, it looks like hornets and yellowjackets are wasps, but not all wasps are hornets or yellowjackets.
btw, one stung me on my shoulder today.* AND* I killed a Copper Head snake. ( didn’t mean to, in hind sight. But, it scared the fuck out of me and I had a post hole digger in my hands. Even more so after I killed it and saw that it was a poisonous snake. :eek: )
Yeah, I’m working on a country type house right now. Actually, still within city limits but every house in this area has about 5 - 20 acres of land. I want one.
Hornets and wasps have smooth stingers.
