MIDGES!
BLACK GNATS!
THOSE LITTLE BLACK FLIES!
They are prolific.
They are in endless and countless clusters.
There must be millions of them, just on your ride alone.
There seems to be a certain time of day, a certain temperature, a certain humidity, a certain location, and a certain height.
…EYE, EAR, AND MOUTH LEVEL WHEN YOU ARE RIDING.
It can feel like someone is in front of you, throwing handfuls of pebbles.
There is the odd break here and there.
You think it may be over, but oh no, the worst is yet to come.
No matter what you wear, they will get on it, under it, and into it.
They show up in the shower, and some are still alive.
WTF?
One will get in your ear.
I know you know the sound.
I know you know the sensation.
It must be dealt with immediately.
You stick your finger in your ear, then look at your finger, and hope you see one on the end of it.
When you don’t, you hope it dropped or flew out.
Then, one day in May, it is as if someone flipped a switch.
A new one appears.
None, then one million.
The Mayfly.
Hmm?
Trying to figure out which one is worse.
The Midges are annoying.
Mayflies are gross.
They are too big.
They land on you and do not leave.
I swear, some have hitched a ride with me.
I unknowingly took them on a hundred-kilometre ride.
Once they attach to your clothes, they are attached.
You have to stop and flick them off.
But, just as fast as they arrive, they are gone.
Then it is back to just the Midges.
Haha, I always like to end my posts with a positive.
A kind of ‘The beauty of riding your bike.’
Give me a minute on this one.
Sorry, I still need a little more time.
Okay, I found this.
‘Midges can tell us a lot about our ecosystems. Midges, when highly populated above bodies of water, are an indication of healthy water with regular oxygen levels. When absent, they point to pollution in the water.’
The next time you are out for a ride, and you have taken four out of your ear, spat six out and had one under your glasses, think of Winston Churchill.
‘If you’re going through hell, keep going.’
Haha, it really isn’t that bad.
Well, actually…
‘If you’re going through hell, keep going.’
Insert fly swatter emoji here.
‘There is another way to ride.’