How to Make Sure the Bedbugs Don't Bite (and a poem about Bed bugs)

 

Having recovered from our month-long bed bug infestation, I'm finding others who went though a similar experience of feeling traumatized. When you have bedbugs, you not only suffer from sleepless nights, you also become socially isolated. You can't have people in your home. You can't visit other people (lest you bring bedbugs with you). It's deeply disturbing psychologically as well as physically unpleasant, especially if you are hyper allergic like me. Thirty percent of people aren't affected by bed bugs (my wife is one of these), but they can carry bed bugs to other people's homes since bed bugs like to hitchhike on clothes, luggage and handbags.

So here are some lessons learned: 

1) When you discover you have bedbugs, deal with the problem immediately and don't try to get rid of them yourself. You'll probably make it worse. Hire a professional asap, preferably one with excellent credentials and recommendations who can provide all three types of service: chemical treatment, heat treatment and fumigation. We highly recommend a company called Isotech Pest Management that provided a bed-bug sniffing canine as well as excellent advice and service. 

2) Chemical and heat treatment are not infallible, no matter what your exterminator says. Both require that you remove stuff from the room being treated. The trouble is bedbugs may be hiding in these items, so when you return them, the bed bugs return. However, if your infestation is limited, these treatments may work. 

3) The only infallible treatment is fumigation. The fumigants kills all bedbugs and eggs (and also termites). Fumigation means tenting your home.  It costs a small fortune but produces peace of mind. 

This week Jill and I went on a date and had veggie burgers and fries in Old Pasadena, and compose this "Little Bad Bed Bug Saga." It was good to be able to look back and laugh. We are finally beginning to heal from our bed bug nightmare.

"The Saga of the Little Bad Bed Bugs"

The first night after returning from Greece
We hoped to spend time sleeping in peace
But bedbugs invaded while we were away
Their message was clear: we’re here to stay!
They gave sweet Anthony 40 plus bites
As well as a month of restless nights.

These bugs for some reason disliked Jill’s taste
So she worked super hard to clean up our place.

When bed bugs bite, you can’t have a good night:
Going to bed makes you very uptight.
So we hired an exterminator who promised to kill
These irksome pests who hide where they will.

We were told to take everything from our humble abode
Wash our clothes and our blankets, load by load by load……
Bedbugs expire when the heat is too high.
So we put some stuff in the dryer to fry
Those bad little bugs ‘til they finally die.

In black plastic bags we put other stuff
Hoping the sun's rays would be enough.
But the days were too chilly so this work was in vain.
Finding stuff later was really a pain!

Jill was exhausted past reason or rhyme
Anthony was the canary in the coal mine.
With daily bites he’d let us know
Those bedbugs had no plans to go.
Weary and anxious and living in fear,
We never knew if the bedbugs were near.

So we hired a beagle with an amazing nose
That knows 10,000 times more than a human nose knows!
Rocky could tell where the bedbugs were hiding
and even could sniff where their eggs were abiding.

We learned that our efforts were on the wrong track.
We needed to try a different tack.
We learned from Isotech that fumigation
Was the only cure for our grim situation.

To make room for the tent, we had to clear
Around the perimeter front and rear.
So we hired Walter, a human machine
Who worked harder than anyone we’d ever seen
He gathered up 35 bags of yard waste.
It cost us a bundle to clean up our place!

Then our water heater went on the fritz.
We bought needed tires! We were having fits!

For four nights we lived in an Airbnb,
And boarded our cats in a place of safety,
while the fumigant wiped out our bug colony.

We spent a small fortune to be bed bug free
And it seemed to take an eternity.

After fumigation, we spent many days
Unpacking our bags in a kind of a daze.

It feels good to have our old lives back
But our bodies take time to learn to relax.

On a happy note our long saga ends:
We can finally hang out in our home with our friends!
Free at last! Free at last! Free of bed bugs at last!
Celebrating with friends will be such a blast!

Celebrate Jill's 70th Birthday with Your Support!

 

Celebrate Jill's 70th Birthday with Your Support!

Join us in celebrating the birthday of Jill Shook, co-founder of Making Housing and Community Happen, who turns 70 years old on Wednesday, November 1. Jill has been tirelessly working for affordable housing for 23 years, advocating, organizing teams and churches, giving workshops nationwide, and publishing a book, Making Housing Happen: Faith-Based Affordable Housing Models, that has been used in campuses across the country.  Jill has worked tirelessly, but is not getting any younger and is aware that our organization needs to plan for a transition when she can no longer work at her current pace. We need to hire younger staff to replace her (and her husband Anthony). Both Jill and Anthony feel led by the Spirit to work full-time as volunteers. Replacing them will require significant funds.  If you'd like to  express your appreciation for Jill,  please contact her at jill@makinghousinghappen.org and make a contribution in her name to MHCH by clicking here. Your support will help us to plan for a bright future for MHCH and to continue Jill's legacy. Also please join us on Nov. 19 when we celebrate the 5th anniversary of Making Housing and Community Happen and honor affordable housing rock stars as well as Jill's 70th birthday. To register, click here.

The Quaker witch trial and the socio-political context of witch hunts

 

With Hallowe'en just around the corner, I'd like to reflect on the socio-political context of witches and witch hunts. I'd like to start my reflection on witch hunts with a true story about the only Quaker witchcraft trial known to have occurred. The year was 1684, and the name of the woman accused of witchcraft was Margaret Mattson. Margaret and her husband arrived in what is today called Pennsylvania before William Penn, and they were Swedish, and along with their neighbors, made up the first group of immigrants to settle along the lower Delaware River. They soon would be displaced by the ever more numerous English settlers who followed Penn. Their being “foreigners” was probably a significant cause of this accusation.

Margaret’s neighbors accused her of being a witch and she was brought before William Penn who served as magistrate. Penn didn’t believe in witches, but there was a law against witchcraft in England and he was legally required to question her, so he asked: “Do you fly on a broomstick?” She didn’t understand his question so she said, “Yes.” Penn responded, “That isn’t a crime. Case dismissed.”

This story illustrates how Quakers did not buy into the myth that women who are different are somehow evil. Perhaps that’s why so many powerful women leaders have emerged from the Quaker movement.

Historically, witch hunts have been a way for the patriarchy to target women who are “different” and challenge the norms.  

Historian Christina Larner  estimates that about 80 percent of those accused of witchcraft in the European witch hunts of the 16th and 17th centuries were women. At the same time, the witch hunters were overwhelmingly male.

According to Erin Cassese, McCarthy’s anti-communist witch hunts also tended to target women. Women were overrepresented among defendants in federal loyalty cases, and agencies that employed a disproportionately large share of women were often singled out for close scrutiny. Historian Landon Storrs notes that evidence presented against female defendants took on a distinctively gendered tone. For example, keeping one’s maiden name, “needlessly” holding a high-paying job while married, and having a “dominant personality” were all grounds for suspicion of communist sympathizing, ostensibly because communists eschewed traditional gender roles.

Today the term “witch hunt” has renewed cultural and political resonance, largely because it’s one of President Trump’s preferred strategies for deflecting criticism and mobilizing his base. Since assuming office, Trump has tweeted some variant of the phrase “WITCH HUNT!” innumerable times.

As  so common in Trump world, Trump inverts the conventional usage and casts himself as the victim. Unlike in the past, the term “witch hunt” is often invoked defensively by men in positions of power and authority. Recent events show that men with political and economic power can often rely on the idea of witch hunts to work for them, not against them. The witch hunt still uses institutional authority to enforce traditional gender norms and power relations.

I think that Hallowe’en is a good time to unmask the ugly face of patriarchy which has persecuted women throughout history for being different, for defying gender norms, and for challenging accepted beliefs. Let’s not allow these perpetrators of violence against women to portray themselves as the victims.  

 

Building Housing on Faith Lands: How Congregations Can Take Action for Housing in CA: Friday Forum

 

Please join us online ICUJP Friday Forum October 27th, 7:30-9:30 am Pacific   Building Housing on Faith Lands: How Congregations Can Take Action for Housing in CA  Join video conference here: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84519726689 Call in by phone: +1 669 900 6833*  Meeting ID: 845 1972 6689 PASSCODE: 742119 *Meeting controls for call-in attendees: To mute/unmute yourself: *6 To raise hand: *9 Brooke Wirtschafter, Director of Community Organizing at IKAR, a Jewish Spiritual Community will speak about IKAR's efforts to build affordable housing on their site and advocate for housing in Los Angeles and California. Join the conversation with our speaker: Brooke Wirtschafter is Director of Community Organizing at IKAR, a Jewish spiritual community in Los Angeles. At IKAR, Brooke works with community members to build effective teams and cultivate leaders, to identify shared values and goals and work toward a better, more just, more humane city, county, and state, with partners from across Los Angeles. Brooke has been proud to support IKAR's work in coalitions advocating for immigrants' rights, justice system transformation, environmental justice, climate action, and housing. She helped IKAR lay the groundwork for building a permanent supportive housing development for formerly homeless seniors as part of its new building, with plans to break ground in 2024. In 2022, she led IKAR’s successful effort to draft and pass a state law (AB 2244) that reduced parking requirements for faith communities that choose to build affordable housing. Brooke also serves as a member of the City of Los Angeles Human Relations Commission. Learn More/Here's how YOU can help: Join Our Future LA Coalition to support the work of IKAR Website: IKAR 7:30 - 7:35  Log in and socialize 7:35 - 7:45  Welcome and introductions  7:45 - 7:50  Reflection (5 min. maximum) 7:50 - 9:15  Program and Q&A 9:15 - 9:20  Announcements 9:20 - 9:30  Closing circle and prayer Start your morning with us! Facilitator and Reflector: Anthony Manousos ** Meetings begin promptly at 7:30 am Pacific. ** ----- Here's how to join the online meeting: To join by video conference, you'll need to download the Zoom app on your computer or mobile device. Click on the link to join the meeting and then enter the Meeting ID number and passcode. You'll be able to see slides and video, as well as speakers and other attendees. If you prefer to join by phone, you'll be prompted to enter the Meeting ID number and passcode. You won't be able to see the visuals or attendees, but you can view them on the meeting video recording afterward.  If you're new to Zoom and would like to use the video option, we recommend you download the app well ahead of time. ICUJP Friday Forum 10/27/23 Time: 07:30 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Option 1: Join video conference  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84519726689 Meeting ID: 845 1972 6689 PASSCODE: 742119 Option 2: Dial in by phone only: +1 669 900 6833 US (California) Meeting ID: 845 1972 6689 PASSCODE: 742119 *Meeting controls for call-in attendees: To mute/unmute yourself: *6 To raise hand: *9 (To find a dial-in number closer to you, go here.) ----- Please note: Our Friday Forums and other events are open to the public. By attending, you consent to having your voice and likeness recorded, photographed, posted on ICUJP's website and social media, and included in ICUJP materials and publications for noncommercial purposes. If you don't want to be photographed or recorded, please let the facilitator know. _________________________________________ 22nd Anniversary of ICUJP: 22 years of working for Justice and Peace Twenty-two years ago, Rev. George Regas of All-Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena reached out to clergy, community leaders, and laypeople to come together to seek an alternative to the fear-mongering and vengefulness sweeping much of our nation in the wake of September 11. The message that they wanted to convey was coherent and powerful: “Religious Communities Must Stop Blessing War and Violence.” On that day, Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace was born. These past 22 years have been a journey for ICUJP - five Presidents, four California Governors, and numerous crisis and issues that would shake the resolve of even the most devout and dedicated of activists. But through it all, we go forward in our mission to be the voice for "the least of these", and our determination to create the change we want to see in the world. On Sunday, September 10th, 2023, ICUJP honored Rev. George Regas's life and legacy, and recognized deserving organizations with the 2023 George F. Regas Courageous Peacemaker Award. As our theme was "Housing is a Human Right", we were glad to shine a light on the work of Making Housing and Community Happen, All-Saints Church Safe Haven Bridge to Housing, the Office of Mayor Karen Bass of Los Angeles, and the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center. Thank you for your part in keeping the vision of George F. Regas alive as we continue creating a place to gather, organize, pray, and act together united by the fundamental principle that Religious Communities Must Stop Blessing War and Violence. Please consider helping Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace in its mission. ICUJP operates as a largely volunteer organization with a small part-time paid staff. We have survived for over 20 years through the generosity of individuals and organizations like you. Like so many other organizations, our ability to raise donations has been hampered during the COVID pandemic.   DONATE HERE!

War and Housing Insecurity Go Hand in Hand: Micah 4-4

This past Tuesday, at our monthly MHCH Housing Justice Forum, I gave a reflection focusing on the motto of MHCH, which is taken from the prophet Micah, who declared that  “Everyone beneath their vine and fig tree shall live in peace and unafraid.”

In other words, it is God’s intention that everyone should have secure, decent and affordable housing. Micah also states that “nations shall turn their swords into ploughshares and study war no more.” He makes the connection between war and housing insecurity and displacement.

During the past few weeks, we’ve seen the devastating effects of war not only on women and children and families, but also on their homes. Over100,000 Armenians fled their homes in Nagorno-Karabakh, fearing “ethnic cleansing.” Nearly 170,000 residences were damaged and nearly 16,000 homes destroyed in Gaza since October 7. One third of Ukrainians have been displaced since the Russian invasion two years ago. That’s nearly twelve million people. According to a UN report, world-wide 108 million people lost their homes due to war by the end of 2023. And 35 million had to leave their homeland due to war.

These numbers are staggering and mind-numbing, but we need to face the fact that our country bears a responsibility for these wars since we are by far the largest arms exporter, or as Dr. King put it, “purveyor of violence,”  in the world. We produce and sell 40% of the world’s weapons!

So, I’d like to close by asking us to reflect on how war is affecting not only the world but also our homeland. President Eisenhower gave a famous speech in 1953 in which he said, that “Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.”

These are prophetic words, especially when you consider that President Biden is asking for over $100 billion in additional military aid to Ukraine and Israel, and many in Congress are eager to allocate these funds. $100 billion could pay for 200,000 homes and end chronic homelessness in our nation!

So let’s pray that our leaders take to heart the words of the prophet Micah and spend our tax dollars not on weapons of war, but on basic human needs like education, medical care, and housing.

Please click here to let your elected officials know that you support a ceasefire and humanitarian aid to Gaza

 

Israel and Palestine: Yes, there IS a Path to Peace: ICUJP Forum this Friday at 7:30 am

 Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace <communications@icujp.org>

Unsubscribe

To:Anthony Manousos

Thu, Oct 12 at 10:32 AM

Please join us online ICUJP Friday Forum October 13th, 7:30-9:30 am Pacific   Israel and Palestine: Yes, there IS a Path to Peace  Join video conference here: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86278308583 Call in by phone: +1 669 900 6833*  Meeting ID: 862 7830 8583 PASSCODE: 033009 *Meeting controls for call-in attendees: To mute/unmute yourself: *6 To raise hand: *9 It is hard at this time to see a way to peace in many parts of our world, especially now in the Middle East. But how did we come to this place in time, and how can we forge a path to compassion and understanding? Join us as we take a serious look at the root causes of the ongoing violence in the Middle East, and do the work of healing our world one person at a time. Join the conversation with our speakers: Estee Chandler is a longtime film and media professional who now focuses her work on human rights. In 2010 she founded the Los Angeles chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), and now proudly serves on the JVP and JVP Action boards of directors. Along with Nagwa Ibrahim she is a Host/Producer of KPFK’s long running radio show Middle East in Focus. Benjamin Kersten is a member-leader with Jewish Voice for Peace at UCLA. He is a graduate student in the UCLA Department of Art History and the Graduate Student Fellow at the UCLA Alan D. Leve Center for Jewish Studies. He also works as a youth educator. Dr. Ahlam Muhtaseb is a professor of media studies at California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB). She is the recipient of the 2020 CSUSB Outstanding Scholarship, Research and Creative Activities Award and was one of the 2019-20 Outstanding Research and Creative Activity Faculty Mentor Awardees. She has an M.A. in Journalism and a Ph.D. in Digital Communication from the University of Memphis, Tennessee. Her research interests include digital communication, digital resistance & decolonization, social justice and diasporic communities. Dr. Muhtaseb is also the co-director and producer of the film 1948: Creation and Catastrophe. Learn More/Here's how YOU can help: Muslim Public Affairs Council Jewish Voice for Peace 1948: Creation & Catastrophe 7:30 - 7:35  Log in and socialize 7:35 - 7:45  Welcome and introductions  7:45 - 7:50  Reflection (5 min. maximum) 7:50 - 9:15  Program and Q&A 9:15 - 9:20  Announcements 9:20 - 9:30  Closing circle and prayer Start your morning with us! Facilitator: Dave Clennon Reflector: Rubi Omar ** Meetings begin promptly at 7:30 am Pacific. ** ----- Here's how to join the online meeting: To join by video conference, you'll need to download the Zoom app on your computer or mobile device. Click on the link to join the meeting and then enter the Meeting ID number and passcode. You'll be able to see slides and video, as well as speakers and other attendees. If you prefer to join by phone, you'll be prompted to enter the Meeting ID number and passcode. You won't be able to see the visuals or attendees, but you can view them on the meeting video recording afterward.  If you're new to Zoom and would like to use the video option, we recommend you download the app well ahead of time. ICUJP Friday Forum 10/13/23 Time: 07:30 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Option 1: Join video conference  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86278308583 Meeting ID: 862 7830 8583 PASSCODE: 033009 Option 2: Dial in by phone only: +1 669 900 6833 US (California) Meeting ID: 862 7830 8583 PASSCODE: 033009 *Meeting controls for call-in attendees: To mute/unmute yourself: *6 To raise hand: *9 (To find a dial-in number closer to you, go here.) ----- Please note: Our Friday Forums and other events are open to the public. By attending, you consent to having your voice and likeness recorded, photographed, posted on ICUJP's website and social media, and included in ICUJP materials and publications for noncommercial purposes. If you don't want to be photographed or recorded, please let the facilitator know. Oct. 20th Forum: Dr. Richard Davenport - Interspirituality _________________________________________ 22nd Anniversary of ICUJP: 22 years of working for Justice and Peace Twenty-two years ago, Rev. George Regas of All-Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena reached out to clergy, community leaders, and laypeople to come together to seek an alternative to the fear-mongering and vengefulness sweeping much of our nation in the wake of September 11. The message that they wanted to convey was coherent and powerful: “Religious Communities Must Stop Blessing War and Violence.” On that day, Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace was born. These past 22 years have been a journey for ICUJP - five Presidents, four California Governors, and numerous crisis and issues that would shake the resolve of even the most devout and dedicated of activists. But through it all, we go forward in our mission to be the voice for "the least of these", and our determination to create the change we want to see in the world. On Sunday, September 10th, 2023, ICUJP honored Rev. George Regas's life and legacy, and recognized deserving organizations with the 2023 George F. Regas Courageous Peacemaker Award. As our theme was "Housing is a Human Right", we were glad to shine a light on the work of Making Housing and Community Happen, All-Saints Church Safe Haven Bridge to Housing, the Office of Mayor Karen Bass of Los Angeles, and the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center. Thank you for your part in keeping the vision of George F. Regas alive as we continue creating a place to gather, organize, pray, and act together united by the fundamental principle that Religious Communities Must Stop Blessing War and Violence. Please consider helping Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace in its mission. ICUJP operates as a largely volunteer organization with a small part-time paid staff. We have survived for over 20 years through the generosity of individuals and organizations like you. Like so many other organizations, our ability to raise donations has been hampered during the COVID pandemic.   DONATE HERE!