As you sit outside these summer evenings watching or playing baseball games, volleyball games or whatever, be sure to bring the Deet. Last week's heavy rains, on top of the other damage they have done, are expected to intensify another warm weather curse … mosquitoes.
Luke Shockman, writing for The Toledo Blade, said the rainfall and resulting areas of standing water are expected to substantially increase the mosquito population quickly. He quotes biologist Lee Mitchell as saying that the initial storms produced "instant mosquitoes" and that a second wave is expected.
The eggs of the little bloodsuckers had been lying dormant and hatched almost as soon as the water hit. Big problem is, those who had been lying around as eggs now will be doing what comes naturally … reproducing.
Mitchell said the mosquitoes out and about now will be laying eggs in the damp areas and standing water that remains from the storms. Because water got into places it normally doesn't get to, eggs that normally would not have had contact with it did.
It takes about two weeks for those new eggs to hatch. Meaning the second wave is about a week away.
Shockman said that Mitchell's main worry, though, is not so much the biting as the increased chance of an outbreak of West Nile virus.
There were 58 cases of WNV in Ohio last year. There were no fatalities in the Buckeye State but Michigan reported four fatalities from 62 cases.
Four years ago, when the disease was pretty much unexpected, it was much worse. That summer, 441 Ohioans were infected and 31 died. In Michigan, 51 deaths were reported from 614 cases.
Speaking of warm summer evenings, one has to wonder why so much coverage was given to one person's temper tantrum this past week. I'm sure you saw it … it was everywhere on the tube.
Joe Mikulik, manager of the minor league Tourists, from Asheville, NC, "went off" over an umpire's ruling and spent several minutes embarrassing himself, his family and baseball.
Mikulik, who played in the minors but apparently never made "The Show," was suspended for seven days and fined a thousand dollars. The fine doesn't seem much by MLB standards, but probably is attention getting for a minor league manager.
Mikulik said he didn't think he ever completely lost control but admitted it looked like it. He issued an apology to fans and the umpires.
What happened was that Koby Clemens, son of Roger, playing for the home team in Lexington, KY, was called safe at second base on a pickoff attempt. Mikulik disagreed … a lot.
What the newsfolks who showed the video over and over again seemed to miss, though, was the choreography of his tirade.
Mikulik's claim that he never completely lost control seems true when you consider what he didn't do. He didn't threaten anybody, didn't hit, push or bump anybody.
His actions at first appear disturbing, disgusting or dumb.
But at least he is intense about something. Wise men say we should all have a cause about which we get excited.
Mikulik has his.