I still have the bites from the blasted termite attack last weekend. They were two minuscule points on my left index finger, and one on my right arm. But the termites did more than bite me, they destroyed one of my most beloved possessions; my dictionary.
Yes, I had a dictionary. And no, it was not that pocket sized one. It was that big, heavy, red, Webster’s 1999 Edition of a dictionary. It was my buffer during my spelling days. It was my security check. It was part of me.
Then, to my dismay (happiness for others), I discovered that the edges touching the wall had been eaten away by the blasted termites living below my cabinet. They must have sense the great importance of this book and they played par of destroying it beautifully.
It was hardbound and had that antique feel to it. Now, it looks more antique since it had holes in places it shouldn’t have and had ruined edges thinking it was being battered from use. Certainly it was not such. I took a great deal in using it carefully and only now did I fail of that mission.
Lifting it from its place on the corner, I was speechless. I did not know what to do. This was a very important book and my mind could not think of a better solution to relieve the book of its parasitic guests. I was also afraid of the reactions of my parents who had invested so much in buying me this piece of Webster. I was stumped.
I went back downstairs and asked for some gas. Gas will surely kill these blokes. I was in a you-murdered-my-things-then-you-will-die-too mode. After sweeping them (the termites) into a plastic bag, I had discovered that my envelopes of certificates, documents, warranties, art materials, artworks, and memorabilia were also visited by my cellulose-eating friends.
Certificates of attendance, certificates of participation, certificates of winning, sketches, and even the cd installer of my laptop were victimized. All had these burnt-edges look like what I do to my projects in high school back then. All were eaten, some halfway, others fully. They spared some but the certificates hold that mark “termites of the Iloilo” were here. Sh*t.
Putting myself together, I decided to separate those who are still usable and dump them at my bed and the rest who were ‘victimized’ are chucked in a bin in the form of an SM plastic bag.
And there was another discovery. The books on the right side corner of the tabletop were also inhabited by the freaking termites. I was close to bawling by that time. I was infuriated. Picking up the books, I saw my old English book. I took it and scanned. All of the pages were holed-out. This was one of the most memorable textbooks I had from my high school days. The termites just transformed it into target practice. It included amongst the ruined materials were the workbooks of my sister whom I would be using next year. Since, the beautiful termites, promoted it to indecipherable blotches, I threw it amongst the garbage.
I almost panicked when the book on WORK which I bought by my money at NBS was on the other side. Luckily, it was not harmed. Only a little dirt, nothing more, nothing less. Phew.
After wiping the surface of the cabinet and tabletop with gasoline, and after four plastic bags full of unusable materials, I was left with half of what was actually there.
I did not throw out the dictionary. It was still usable though it looks like pellets got through it.
So what was the lesson? Make sure there are no termites underneath your floor. Make sure. Or else never put something important and leave it there for a couple of weeks. That was my mistake. My big mistake. In a few weeks time, what my parents and I had earned for many years were reduced to moist, holed, pulp. I never thought that would be so fast.
After the incident, I took on some advice on hoe to keep my books. Nang Adel said I should use plastic containers since termites do not go through, Nang Janice said I should cover the tabletop and cabinet top with plastic wrap. Plastic was the only solution yet I did not thought of doing that in the first place.
I wish they would never com back (the termites, I mean). I am going to be very mean to them if they do./KP
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