Cicadas in the Morning

Life in the South wouldn’t be complete if you didn’t hear cicadas in the morning.

These bugs are kind enough to let you know that “it’s warm out today” and, as all is Southerners know, that’s what it was yesterday and will be tomorrow. They’re tiny little Captain Obvious(es) letting us know that our air-conditioning units are well worth their weight in gold.

The thing about these bugs is that they only make their noise in the summer months. Another thing is that they she’s their exoskeletons and kids like to play with them. That part creeps some people out and I remember not wanting to touch the husks as a kid.

I remember David Letterman doing a bit where the audience member was picked to look at a picture to say if it was a cicada or if it was John Cecada. Needless to say, it was a close up of something hairy. I don’t suspect anyone here has ever looked at a cicada close enough to care it had hair. In fact, if a Southerner is close enough to look at one they’re going to kill it.

You must kill a cicada quickly. If you do not, it makes a horrible noise as it flops about trying to escape. Or attack. All I know is they become irradic and loud when you are killing them, so make the death swift.

In short… You know you’re in the South and it’s hot when you hear the cicadas making their mating calls.