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I am forever and always fascinated by bugs, or to be more correct in terminology, “insects.” One of the worst mistakes I ever made was to sell my Entomology book, the semester after I had taken a university course with a dear professor who had moonlighted in theater and could actually emulate a “chewing insect,” a “sucking insect,” etc. He kept us entertained and informed in one of the best classes I have ever taken. Yet, I digress.

Recently, I read something about a quilt magazine reader who was so upset at seeing a spider on the pages (not a real one, of course), she threatened to discontinue her subscription. Spiders, during Victorian times, were a symbol of good luck, and women cheerfully embroidered them onto their Crazy Quilts, “the first art quilts.”

In fact, NOT to have one present was to invite BAD LUCK. Spiders mostly do not bother me. There are some I avoid, of course, namely, the Black Widow, the Brown Recluse, and the short bodied, thick legged, hairy black spider (See, I told you I should not have sold that book!) Not knowing the spider’s name has never stopped me from adding it to my miniature crazy quilts, along with Ladybugs, and sometimes, Butterflies!

No matter where one goes, a person cannot avoid insects. We were just coming in the back door yesterday (the weather had warmed up to the 40s) and I spotted the tiniest little, fragile insect that could have been mistaken for a piece of road dirt on the window. I just marvel at such creatures. What do they eat?

The Ladybugs, who are no ladies at all, have reappeared upstairs, leaving their intractable yellow stains on my white curtains, if touched. They are awakening from their slumber between the wide floor boards of the upper regions of the house.

I hate hornets, and cluster flies. Hornets look so menacing and they swoop and twirl all over the place and rarely lite long enough to swat them.

Insect worms are another matter altogether. One morning, when I was a substitute teacher, I had gotten up early, alone, to eat breakfast. It was a dark, wintry morning, and I proceeded to make some Cream of Wheat cereal in the semi-dark, without turning on the kitchen light. When I was almost finished, I did decide to have some light on the subject and discovered, much to my dismay, that I’d eaten a bowl of worms. The high school students were delighted with the tale. I became known as the teacher who eats worms for breakfast.

Maggots, which are the larvae of flies, have been found to be very useful for cleaning out wounds. They eat necrotic flesh but leave the healthy parts alone, thus facilitating healing. One woman who was a diabetic stood to lose her foot until this “treatment” was performed. Who would have guessed?

As for me, my only other adverse experience was with the larvae of the worms that hang out on Brussel Sprouts. I went to the garden and harvested the vegetable and brought it in to cook. By the time I checked the boilng water, the gray worms had floated to the surface. Ugh! Needless to say, we did not eat the vegetable.

My professor told us that if there were a nuclear holocaust, insects would still walk the earth. They are adaptable and that is why they have been here for so long. Of course, there are beautiful insects. I would have to say that a HUGE yellow and black spider that I came across while weeding the garden one fall, is one of the most magnificent creatures I have ever seen. Praying mantis are always fun, and Walking Sticks are always a surprise, when they move, as they blend right in.

Yes, my dear professor had once been a can inspector for a pineapple processing plant in Hawaii. This man seemed to keep re-inventing himself, but as an expert on all kinds of “bugs” (please forgive me for not saying “insects,” if you are reading this, sir), many opportunities were open to him. Today, the word “bug” has taken on a new meaning: that of “electronic snooping,” or a virus in a computer. I’ll reiterate, I love bugs and I am so sorry to have sold my reference book! Bugs are also fun to draw, to color, and to sew onto quilts – I have done so, and I will continue.

All miniature crazy quilts in this article were made by Patricia Cummings.

Patricia Cummings
The Crazy Quilter at Quilter’s Muse Publications