Today's post has to do with the horrible, nasty, no-good flying creature those of us on Guam refer to as the "boonie bee". I have written about these awful, aggressive bees before (June '08) when I was stung on my wedding ring finger and ultimately had to have all 4 of my wedding bands cut off. Take a closer look at the "boonie bee"...
Notice the yellow band near the back end. That is how we distinguish it from other bees/wasps.
Today I was attempting to tackle my to-do list and knock out a few things before school starts up again. I was outside taking down the Christmas lights when I was stung by the dreaded boonie bee, again on my left hand; this time on my middle finger. Ouch! It hurts so much worse than a regular bee sting. I immediately pulled of my wedding rings (don't want to have a repeat of June). I have taken 2 doses of diphenhydramine, put on the meat tenderizer paste, and applied ice. Right now I can't bend any of my fingers on my left hand and it is swollen about twice its' normal size. If you're lucky I just might put a picture of my hand here later!
Much to my dismay, I think I will need to dig out all of my beautiful flowers in order to get rid of as many of the boonie bees as possible. I knew I was going to have to trim everything down before we moved but I think my time-table has just changed. I hope Lilymei can leave the island without the "pleasure" of a boonie bee sting. The rest of us can't say the same. Does anyone have any bee/wasp spray?
14 comments:
Oh, I'm so sorry. I was chasing one today off of my bike seat! I do have a tiny bit of spray left. You are welcome to it.
I've read about putting a penny on top of bee stings and holding it in place with a bandaid. Not sure if it works as, even tho' I work with flowers outside, I rarely get stung; but it is something I've stuck in my brain to remember.
Heather BT
Oh yes, Merry Christmas!
OUCH! I want to see a picture of your hand!!
So when do you leave Guam and where are you going?
Kristy
PS
Did I thank you for the Christmas card? The kids are adorable:) I hope next year I will have my act together and send out cards!
Hey Jean,
How about I send a ton of New York SNOW and you can FREEZE the Boonie Bees? LOL
Deb Keating
I guess there has to be some downfall to living in a beautiful, warm place!
No bees here in Columbus, OH, but not too cold for Owen to ride his new bike.
Amy
Sorry about the bees! Ugh!!! Hope you had a wonderful Christmas!
Happy 2009!
Love,
Monica
hey jean -- i want to know how u got soooo close to take a picture of the boonie bee? its either the bee or the pig getting the best of your flowers/garden....glad u took of the rings in time.....
loved the picture of the kids....and it brought back memories of the island....miss u all lots and will update our blog soon! Miss ya Nat
ps -- can't wait to see u guys this summer!!!
Hi there, I'm a fellow Naval Base Guam neighbor. My 2 year old son got stung by a boonie bee yesterday on the cheek! It was his first one..ouch! I told my friends and family back home about it on facebook. They all googled boonie bee, and your description and pictures showed up in their search. I just wanted to say sorry you got stung.. again!, and thanks for putting up the pics and everything... my family has a new appreciation for the "dreaded boonie bee"! I'm not a blogger, but I'm on FB - Jaime Dequine. Maybe I'll see you around base! Be careful out there - it's a jungle - literally! :)
Hi. It has been many years since I lived on Guam, but I do remember my boonie bee experiences. One left a hole in my thigh for more than six months. The bees love nesting in tailpipes of cars, bikes and motor scooters. They are very aggressive. I hope your hand is better soon and that no other family members have a boonie bee encounter.
I sure would like to be enjoying one of Guam's fantastic beaches now.
I hope the rest of your stay there is fantastic. Best wishes to all of you.
VLG in Enid, OK
Hello! My name is Beth in Oregon, and I found your great blog. We are leaving next month to get our son in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, and were wondering if we could ask you some questions about your stay or what to bring etc... thank you in advance Your daughter and family are beautiful!
Soooo when I was like maaaaybe 6 or 7 my mom and our family were transfred to Guam loved it but I almost died at a very young age living on Anderson AFB i was playing with a friend skating around in front of my house and I leaned on a car not knowing since i had just moved in. and well i felt on sting and freaked out and then got swarmed by these flying deamons. my mom who was in the shower heard my screams outside and ran out pulling me by the skates throwing me in the shower...call the hospital and counted almost 100 stings on the back of one leg. and they said we would have to drive across the island to the navy base to get a lot of shots while i was going in and out of life. so yes those suckers are sooooo horrible. the drs were glad i survived.
When I lived on Guam on my 12th birthday I was stung by 12 boonie bees (i think thats the name)
my arms swelled up 3 times bigger than normal
those bees grab you with their leg and hold tight then sting like a tattoo gun and it hurts 50x more the honey bee
I used to live on Guam and I had more than a few boonie bee stings. Try tearing apart a cigarette and putting the tobacco on your stings next time. It worked great for me at least. Took the pain away and kept the swelling down. Hope this helps!
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