A big tent, full of toxic gas

No, not just the Republican Party, but also the Artist House -- the guest house a dozen steps from the bedroom door at our rental.

It was covered in rubberized canvas and pumped full of poison to kill any termites. It made me uneasy the first time I saw the process, 50 feet away from a guesthouse room almost a decade ago. But this close . . . all night long I thought I detected a funny taste in my mouth (and mostly in my mind).

Our new place won't need it: Concrete piers, no wood in touch with ground -- and most of all, treated lumber, HardiPlank or stuff like ipe wood that's naturally resistant.