4 ms·

No comments? I sure don't miss NYC cockroaches. They're seriously tough mother fuckers. Whack them with a shoe sole and they usually shrug it off and barely br

No comments? I sure don't miss NYC cockroaches. They're seriously tough mother fuckers. Whack them with a shoe sole and they usually shrug it off and barely break stride. The real problem with apartments in cities is that your neighbors' roaches become your roaches. No way to keep them from moving from apartment to apartment via cracks in the walls. I don't know how you prevent something like that? I'm now in a single family detached house in suburbia. That has its own problems, but roach infestations aren't among them.

goldenkey 9y ago
I used to live in a connected house in Brooklyn. In fact, the whole neighborhood is streets of ten to twenty all-brick, connected houses. So if even one person had a roach problem, it could migrate a couple houses down. Having cats would definitely help. One time, our neighbors decided to move and had moving sales. Well, apparently their house was so decrepit and disgusting, the stove just covered in food and soot, roaches roaming freely everywhere. We had seen a roach or two in our house, a waterbug maybe, but were surprised that we hadn't seen more considering how close it all was. I guess the brick/cement walls were tight? I grew up in that house for 20 years, so I'm partial to having fond memories despite my mother always complaining about how its' too little square feet and too many steps. We were robbed when I was little, I have no recollection except lucid and possibly ~fake~ dreams. My parents responded by putting wrought iron bars on all the windows. Smart move. In fact I was often afraid of being mugged since I had to get on the bus to goto Brooklyn Tech at around 5am when it was dark. But I survived. Used to carry bear-grade pepper spray and a nice sized SpiderCo Civilian defense knife. Never had to use them thankfully. We had a basement that we finished nicely, so it was 3 decent sized floors - but so many, so many steps, two long flights. My parents still live in that house but want to move. I believe they purchased it nearly 35 years ago for close to $150k. Now it's worth $800k. And its' not a mansion, brownstone, or anything fancy. That's NYC / Brooklyn for you ;-)
- mfoy_ 9y ago
  I feel like if I carried a knife I'd just be that more likely to cut myself on it, or have it taken and used against me...
  - goldenkey 9y ago
    Don't carry a weapon if you are not prepared to use it. Very important dogma.
ams6110 9y ago
> No way to keep them from moving from apartment to apartment via cracks in the walls. Not totally effective because it's almost impossible to be thorough enough, but you can use painters caulk to seal up every crevice you can find. You'll also need weatherstrip around and a seal under your exterior doors. Unlike rodents, roaches don't gnaw through walls. Regular applications of insecticide help also but a lot of people don't like that.

goldenkey 9y ago

I used to live in a connected house in Brooklyn. In fact, the whole neighborhood is streets of ten to twenty all-brick, connected houses. So if even one person had a roach problem, it could migrate a couple houses down. Having cats would definitely help. One time, our neighbors decided to move and had moving sales. Well, apparently their house was so decrepit and disgusting, the stove just covered in food and soot, roaches roaming freely everywhere. We had seen a roach or two in our house, a waterbug maybe, but were surprised that we hadn't seen more considering how close it all was. I guess the brick/cement walls were tight? I grew up in that house for 20 years, so I'm partial to having fond memories despite my mother always complaining about how its' too little square feet and too many steps. We were robbed when I was little, I have no recollection except lucid and possibly ~fake~ dreams. My parents responded by putting wrought iron bars on all the windows. Smart move. In fact I was often afraid of being mugged since I had to get on the bus to goto Brooklyn Tech at around 5am when it was dark. But I survived. Used to carry bear-grade pepper spray and a nice sized SpiderCo Civilian defense knife. Never had to use them thankfully. We had a basement that we finished nicely, so it was 3 decent sized floors - but so many, so many steps, two long flights. My parents still live in that house but want to move. I believe they purchased it nearly 35 years ago for close to $150k. Now it's worth $800k. And its' not a mansion, brownstone, or anything fancy. That's NYC / Brooklyn for you ;-)

mfoy_ 9y ago
I feel like if I carried a knife I'd just be that more likely to cut myself on it, or have it taken and used against me...
- goldenkey 9y ago
  Don't carry a weapon if you are not prepared to use it. Very important dogma.

ams6110 9y ago

> No way to keep them from moving from apartment to apartment via cracks in the walls. Not totally effective because it's almost impossible to be thorough enough, but you can use painters caulk to seal up every crevice you can find. You'll also need weatherstrip around and a seal under your exterior doors. Unlike rodents, roaches don't gnaw through walls. Regular applications of insecticide help also but a lot of people don't like that.