This is really starting to get to me.

This, my friends, is the remains of an otherwise healthy zucchini plant. I picked it up for 99 cents at the feed store. It was lush...and healthy...full of promise. And food.

But now? After ONE NIGHT IN THE GARDEN? It's nothing but shreds. The culprit? Earwigs. Pincher bugs. I despise them. And there must be millions of these stupid bugs in my yard. Millions. And I hardly think that a rolled up newspaper and a bucket of soy sauce and oil is going to do a dang thing.

As a matter of fact...when I went out to garden the following morning after carefully placing the yogurt container holding the soy sauce/oil combo...would you believe it was knocked over?! Yes. Knocked clean over and spilled. And not a dead earwig in sight!

And the newspaper? I opened it up and there were three earwigs. Three. One. Two. Three.

The earwigs. They mock me. And I don't know what else to do. If it weren't for the chickens I'd use poison. Organic schmorganic. But I let the chickens roam around in the evening...and I don't want to accidentally hurt them. I would be devastated if anything happened to one of the girls.

So...what to do? I don't know? I'm at my wits end. I am dealing with major amounts of reality. Bugs. Devastation. Anemic vegetables. This is not what I imagined. Not at all. And I don't know what to do. Other than be glad that we aren't having to survive off our land. Because we'd be very hungry.