Cooperative Living October 2015 - 7

rior paint. Once dried, it was like having a
plastic coating over the wood. They won't
get through it. I don't know how many
years it will last, but when I see the carpenter
bees making holes, then I know it's time
to repaint.
Carl Wilkins, Lynchburg
TRAPS WORK WONDERS
In response to Brenda Ferguson's carpenter
bee problem (Sept. 2015 Cooperative
Living), a simple solution is to use a trap
specifically designed for them.
A simple web search for " carpenter bee
traps " will bring up many styles of traps,
but the principle is the same. A container is
attached to a base that is then attached in
the area of the bee problem. The trap uses
no pesticides or lures, the bees go into the
pre-drilled holes, go down into the jar and
are permanently trapped there where they
die from heat or desiccation.
Michael Gillespie, Louisa
LUBE THEM OR SMACK THEM
In the September edition of Cooperative
Living, Brenda Ferguson of Concord
expressed a problem with carpenter bees.
I've always called them " borer bees, " but the
end result is the same. They're black and
yellow, about the size of a quarter and persistent
in their desire to bore into the siding
and eaves of the house.
I have had very good results using WD40
sprayed into their holes. If one is in there
it dies almost immediately. The wood tends
to absorb the WD-40 so the residual effect
HISTORY MYSTERY
Each issue, we will publish
a photo of some person, place
or thing (or a portion thereof)
of historical significance in
Virginia, and readers will be
invited to submit their best guess
as to the identity of the photo.
Send it in writing with your
name, address, and phone
number to HISTORY MYSTERY,
c/o Cooperative Liv ing, P.O. Box
2340, Glen Allen, VA 230582340;
or guess online at
www.co-opliving.com under
" Contests. " Deadline for entries
is Oct. 20. All correct entries will
be put into a drawing and a winner
announced in the Jan. 2016
issue. The winner will re ceive a
check for $25. 
 DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS IS?
The August
2015 HISTORY
MYSTERY (r),
was the Bob
White Covered
Bridge in Patrick County, built
across the Smith River in 1921. This 80-foot
bridge is currently maintained by the county
government. Reader Donald Rice (l) of Sealston
was our $25 winner. Congratulations, Donald!
is to keep them away. It also seems to give
them a bad taste in their mouths so they
start avoiding the area.
This technique does require frequent
monitoring of the affected area and several
days of spraying. If you get to them early in
the spring when you first see them, the
result is often a " bee-free " spring.
I also am a tennis player so using a badminton
racket on the ones flying around is
very effective and quite satisfying. Just
smack them out of the air.
Dean Brown, Stanardsville
TWO SOLUTIONS, NEITHER EASY
NOR CHEAP
Brenda Ferguson's carpenter bee problem
can be solved in two ways, and neither is
easy or cheap.
Take off the wood being bored into and
burn it or otherwise dispose or it. Paint new
wood on all sides, leaving no raw wood, two
coats preferred. Carpenter bees will not bore
through the paint.
The other method is to put clad metal
over the exterior wood surfaces. The bees
will still bore into the wood, but you will
not see the problem.
George Hibbard, Warrenton
THE WAVE WAS MOST ENJOYABLE!
It was most enjoyable and affirming to
read Richard Johnstone Jr.'s VIEWPOINT
entitled " The Wave. "
October 2015/www.co-opliving.com
Each of us is personally responsible for
maintaining a social cordiality while driving.
Waving to fellow drivers brings a
humane aspect to the otherwise impersonal
realm of driving. Courteous waves create
civil and considerate responses, helping
to bring kindness into the very social
aspect of driving. Thank you for a delightful
VIEWPOINT and an ever-informative
magazine. Wave on!
Carol Maureen DeHart, via email
REARVIEW MIRRORS ARE
FOR BACKING UP
" I'd like to teach the world to sing in
perfect harmony. I'd like to hold it in my
arms and keep it company. That's the song
I hear - let the world sing today - a
song of peace that echoes on, and never
goes away. "
This song was popular in the 1970s.
Why can't we shift our focus from concerns
that tend to divide us, such as flags,
politics, religion, and other topics, and
instead use our energy to draw us closer
to others by volunteering to pick up litter,
visit a nursing home, send a thank-you
note to your pastor, write a letter, phone
someone, smile, shake hands, and the list
goes on.
We need to live in the present. A
rearview mirror is for backing up, not
moving forward.
Mary Anne Pultz, Lexington 
5
http://www.co-opliving.com
Cooperative Living October 2015

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