i detect a pattern here...

i woke up this morning and examined myself in the mirror. it was clear that i'm officially getting bitten by something. i saw about 10 bites on my arms, and one on my leg. one bite on each arm was ENORMOUS, like a 2-inch diameter red itchy welt. either they're biting harder, or my tolerance is decreasing.

kirby, out on the sofabed in the livingroom, seems to be unaffectd so far.

i got online and googled "bed bug bites" and found myself on bedbugger.com, looking at the photos people submitted of their bites. it hit a little too close to home.

so when i got home from work tonight, i went into the bedroom and pulled the sheets back. i scanned the open bed and saw nothing. i ran my hands over it -- more nothing. then i picked up the pillows...

i actually twitched when my eyes detected dark matter in my pristine sheets. i knew right away i was looking at blood. but the location was bizarre. but as i got closer, i saw next to it was a little round dead bug.

since it was dead, i left it all alone and ran back to the computer. bedbugger.com said a few things that were relevant here:

1. if you find a bug, save it. tape it to an index card or something so you can prove to your landlord or pest control people that you do, in fact, have bugs.
2. some people never, ever find a bug. if you find one, you're lucky. don't throw it away.
3. it is not uncommon to find blood on bedsheets. it's a result of a bug biting, and a person rolling over and killing it while it's fresh.

so i grabbed my tape dispenser from the desk, went back to the bedroom, and picked up the critter. i taped it to a piece of paper and labeled it with the date. i brought the paper back out to the computer, where i returned yet again to bedbugger.com to review the images of bugs they had. i had a dead ringer.

FUCK!

envisioning the battle i have ahead of me with the landlord and/or super, i also took a photo of the blood smear in my bed.
it's going to be a long-sleeve day today.