Oh man have I had a crappy last few days.
So I arrive at my Airbnb in Decatur, IL where I am supposed to spend 10 days of peace and quiet. But my second day there, I see a bedbug in the kitchen. I catch it under a glass, and I contact my host. My host sends an exterminator who tells me it is not a bedbug, and then smashes it to bits. I took pictures, and the thing was definitely a bedbug. Everyone who has seen my pics agrees, including an exterminator. I think the exterminator was either inept, or more likely in cahoots with the host.
I knew it was a bedbug, so I still vacated the property and cancelled the rest of my stay, which automatically refunded 50% of my costs. I will fight Airbnb for the remaining 50%, but to do so I need to actually contact Airbnb customer support, and they have been unreachable as presumably they are dealing with a lot of people unhappy with their Labor Day accommodations. Meanwhile the host is sending me name-calling messages.
Meanwhile I am back at my parents house in Chicago, washing my clothes to kill bedbugs, and am about to spray my car with bedbug poison I bought on Amazon. It is cramped and crowded here. My wife is depressed and difficult to deal with right now, but who can blame her: she has now had 2 vacations cancelled, one for COVID and one for bedbugs.