coell's Profile

Last year, I caught bedbugs from a boyfriend who lived in a gross apartment building in Las Vegas. We washed anything fabric in hot water and ran the dryer on high heat, and kept things away from the bed or floor. We steam cleaned the carpets, and picked up anything off the floor we thought they could hide in or under. Then we bought a sack of Diatomaceous Earth online, and dusted the whole place by filling a sock with it, tying it off, and tapping it on all the surfaces. Yes, it sucked living in that powdery world, but even after a few days the bites stopped. After a couple weeks, we cleaned up all the powder, and just powdered the edges of the room, the mattress under the sheets, and around the posts that touch the floor (renewed every 2 weeks since.) We made sure there were no bridges to the bed without crossing that powder barrier - no bed skirt, nothing touching the walls - in order to get to us, they had to cross the powder, and it would kill them. Haven't seen a trace of them since! It was a total nightmare, but it all worked out in the end.

Don't stop buying used furniture - it's good for your wallet and the environment. Just take a flashlight and inspect the seams and dark places to avoid major infestations. Then before you take it inside, dust all the nooks and crannies just to be sure (with the sock bag) and hope for the best!

When I was in art school, I went through a lot of Xacto blades, so I bought one of those 100-packs in a little cardboard box. It must have spilled in the bottom of my satchel, because I pulled out a book and saw the bottom was stabbed with dozens of blades, sticking out like porcupine needles.

I was so grateful I hadn't reached my hand down in there for a pen, but it took a flashlight and tweezers to find all of them stabbed into the nooks and crannies of the bag - some had cut through into other pockets and to the outside - what if I had run my hand across the bottom?? YIKES. I still get the heebly-jeeblies remembering it. To this day, I'm nervous sticking my hand down into that bag.

I've since bought several more bulk packets of those blades, and now I transfer them to a tight plastic container!

I live in Vegas and send all my guests to the Golden Nugget downtown. Their recent renovations are crowned by a gorgeous courtyard pool that contains a shark aquarium in the center with a glass tube slide within. The gaming areas are well-ventilated and have warm amber lighting. My crowd prefers a less Disney-fied scene than the Strip, where everything is overpriced, faux finished, and crowded with douchebags or fanny-packers. Cabs are cheap or some places offer free shuttles. Freemont Street is cheaper and better paying for gamblers, it has colorful people-watching on the low end, free live music often, and a few fabulous bars and music venues in East Freemont (though I wouldn't wander too far past the touristy areas, downtown's getting better but it isn't nice beyond the casino-security view; and the majority of the hotels down there are bargain-basement, emphasis on basement.)

Specifically, the Beauty Bar and Griffin are posh; and the downtown area hosts an outdoor art fair and gallery soiree on the first Friday of every month, free shuttle from El Cortez. The walking areas during FF contain some fun shopping for antiques, kitche, furniture, and thrift shops.