When I first moved to Mexico, I bragged to family members about how perfect the weather was here. “You can leave the windows open all night!” I’d said.
By comparison, in Dallas, you can leave the windows open for exactly one week, and then the heat gets so oppressive that you start googling “How to fry an egg on sidewalk.”
The Mexico City weather tricked me, though. Everything was breezy and fine until a few weeks ago, when suddenly I started waking up with mosquito bites.
I took to spraying myself with OFF “Deep Woods” before I went to bed. (Nothing like the industrial scent of bug spray to entice the hubby.) The other option would have been closing the window, but it’d gotten so darn hot outside that we just couldn’t. We don’t have air conditioning. No one here does.
A few days ago, though, I forgot to spray. I woke up to pinpricks on my knees and feet. CRAP. Mosquitoes! I slapped at my legs, and fumbled around in the darkness for my OFF. (It’s on my nightstand.) With hubby sleeping soundly beside me — the bugs never bite him — I sprayed my arms and legs and neck, and shut my eyes and sprayed my face, ignoring the faint burning on my eyelids. I pulled the sheet up to my chin and tried to go back to sleep.
Unfortunately, in my sheet cocoon, it was too hot to sleep. Sweat collected in my elbows and behind my knees. The sheet stuck to my skin. I was so miserable I wanted to cry. Hubby, meanwhile, was snoring lightly, which only made me feel even more miserable. Teetering over the insomnia precipice, and probably because I’m just mean, I woke him up.
“I can’t SLEEP!” I huffed. “I’m getting bitten by mosquitoes!”
“Do you want me to get your bug spray?” he said. Even in the middle of the night, he’s patient and kind. Unlike the wife who wakes people up just because she can.
I told him no, and eventually, after about an hour later of trying to calm my mind by thinking about beaches and mountains and lakes, I drifted off.
The next day he went out and bought this:
We now sleep with the windows closed. Problem solved — but I’m still going to keep OFF on my nightstand, just in case.
If you’d still like the window open you might experiment with blowing the fan across you towards the window. I think they don’t like the blowing air or it messes up their homing in on your breath or something.
Most of the year we sleep with the windows open here in Mazatlán and are seldom bothered by mosquitos…but the fans are always on!
Thanks for the tip Nancy! I think I will try blowing the fan toward the window — as long as I’m covered in bug spray too. (At the beginning, while I experiment.)
I know what you are talking out. I had the same problem UNTIL. Cora Cordana from Dallas turned me on to this bug device, that kills mosquitos.
In the supermarket or Wal-Mart, next to bug sprays-off, etc. Find this little device that plugs into the electrical socket called “Baygon” and/or “Raid.” You then put a small wafer, “plaquitas” into this device. AND mosquitos are gone. I like to sleep with windows open too. So like 15 min before bed I plug that thing in and put a wafer in, then when i go to bed no mosquitos AND no bug spray in the room or on me either. The “Raid” one I can smell, but the “Baygon” is odorless.
Never saw a device like this in Dallas but it is available her. Funny how not a window has a wind screen here.
This is a cruel initiation technique mosquitos use to sniff out the newbies. I’m following JChairez’s advice on the Baygon ‘cuz I’m getting pretty cranky these days.
mija!
something we learned in Australia– “mozzies” (mosquitoes) hate tea tree oil and most of the repellants down under are made with the stuff. So if you want to move away from the chemical-based repellants, I’d try… works like a charm and smells better too. (I can always send you some tea tree oil- do they have that down there?) xoxoxox