Yeah - and calling them a, ‘Palmetto Bug’ doesn’t fool me!
The first time I saw one was in Army Basic Training, Fort Jackson, SC. I was on KP (not being punished; we all had to do it) and the Mess Sergeant sent me into the pantry for a can of this or that - moved the can - and the thing stood on it’s hind legs and HISSED at me!
Of course, they thought it was HILARIOUS that this ‘Yankee Girl’ would be afraid of a bug - but I was scarred for LIFE!
And don’t even get me started on the enormous SIZE and weird colors of what they call ‘Grasshoppers’ down there! Yikes!
...and SNAKES! Later attending a Land Navigation class at Fort Beauregard, LA. LAND? It was mostly SWAMP! *SHUDDER*
Why, God? Just...WHY? LOL!
I’ve never called them Palmetto bugs. Who cares if they flew off a tree and into the house? They’re a menace to society!
Yes, lots of swampland in the South. Like you said, more swamp than land!
I am lucky that when I grew up, you could water ski all day and not see an alligator on a lake. Can’t do that anymore. Too many people are feeding them, so if you see one heading towards you instead of away from you, get to safety as fast as you can. These ones are coming for you, your kid, or your pet.