See that tiny, black speck next to this juicy, red plum?
My house has been invaded.
I leave out bananas because I like to make this banana bread recipe with sour cream and very, very ripe bananas. Saw a few fruit flies, so I tossed the bananas and a couple of apples into the trash outside, put out a glass filled with about an inch of red wine. Normally, this takes care of the problem. Fruit flies love red wine and they hang out and drown.
Went into the kitchen about an hour later and freaked. Now, I can get “a little” absent minded while writing, but I keep my house pretty neat. So, I’m thinking no handful of ripening bananas created this colony. I start frantically looking for the source.
Did a potato roll under a shelf somewhere and rot?
Is there a spot of spilled jam in a corner I missed? Wait, make that entire jar because… please!
Then, my son, my precious handful of a boy, came into the kitchen, head down, hands behind his back. He shuffled one foot back and forth, then bravely lifted his head. I knew instantly.
It was confession time.
Seems he’s been throwing apple cores in a rarely used trash can upstairs. I asked if there were fruit flies around the trash and he nodded. I ask my teenager if she’d seen them and she just nodded and shrugged.
HELLO????
I made my son carry everything out. That’s when I learned he’d been hiding this secret. With their main breeding ground axed, the tiny monsters swarmed into my kitchen. I’m talking hundreds! So, I made my son help me set out apple cider traps (Isn’t the Internet a wonderful thing?) while we had YET ANOTHER discussion about why parents make important rules.
In writing, yes, my proposal is nearly polished. I’m liking it so far and look forward to my agent’s feedback. But I have to say, I’ve been feeling pretty guilty about being so focused, I missed the Great Fruit Fly New World Takeover going on upstairs.
It’s been two days and the battle is nearly won. I have traps all over the house and my house is sparkly clean because I’ve scrubbed everything. Seriously, bleach has been generously bestowed because… EEEWWW.
But I am sooo sick of tiny, black things dive bombing my beverages! And hey, have you ever tried saying “fruit flies” fast five times?