Stink Bugs Galore

I want to personally thank whoever was responsible for introducing stink bugs to our area. Apparently these bugs -- technically known as Halyomorpha halys or "Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs" -- were first found in Allentown, PA, in 1998, and had apparently been inadvertently transported here along with cargo from China or Japan.

We first started noticing these things a few years ago, and now our home is like a little international airport for these stupid things. Their bodies are shaped like little stealth bombers, and when you squish them, they emit this nasty odor, hence their names.

The nice thing is that they're pretty stupid and easy to catch, just like the Cleveland Browns. But there are so many of the doggone things. They also seem to have some sort of unnatural fascination with our gas grill. When I take the cover off the grill, there are always a dozen or so of them flittering around, and a bunch of them will just sit there on the grill and look at me as if to say, "Now what?"

I must admit that it's fun to turn the grill on and see how high the temperature will get before they'll fly off. I should keep a chart and record my findings, and see which ones last through the highest temperatures. And people tell me I have no life...!