My favorite smell that I have come to associate with summer is the aroma of burning OFF! mosquito coils. That's right: don't give me the sweet aroma of coconut tinged sunblock, ocean breezes and sandy beaches, fresh cut grass, campfires, lemonade, or wild flowers. Give me some citronella or good ol' fashioned DEET.
The OFF! coils have been around for years, but last summer I discovered the metal portable coil holders. They come in a pack of two and, based on the product description and online pictures, the intention is for campers to place one coil in a holder and then hang it from their tent or nearby their outdoor area to help repel mosquitoes.
But not me. I like to crack the holders in half and place a coil on each half so that I have four coils burning simultaneously. I place them around my patio chair as if I'm in the middle of a zisurrú holding a glass of wine, trying to ward off mosquitoes instead of evil spirits.
My mosquito coil circles don't seem to be working, however. This past week, I've sat outside almost every night with my ring of protection and yet my legs still contain swollen bug bites where I have scratched my legs raw. Tonight I discovered I have a mosquito bite on my right cheek.
So I take this as a sign. Not that I need to start spraying myself physically with bug spray or to spend more time indoors until the bugs have died for the summer season. No, this is a sign that I need to buy more metal mosquito holders so that I can expand my magic circle to eight burning coils...
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