While the notion of ingesting even a live garden-variety cockroach is cause for pause for most people, the amusement park challenge has been rendered even more formidable by the fact that the Madagascar hissing cockroach comes about its name quite naturally. Indeed, it does hiss — in the mouth, down the gullet, all the way into the stomach, at which point ingest gives way to digest ... for those lucky enough to get that far. Of course, then they have to hop in a set of cars that goes really fast before going really HIGH before falling really HARD.

... Speaking of organic means to deal with pests, I want to offer a tip o’ the hat to you garden center operators who have steadily trained many of your customers to be better stewards of this great land of ours. Or, maybe, it was the customer who trained the garden center folk. In any case, organic controls for pests and diseases have moved from the back corner to the most prominent display areas in many stores. And everyone — save, perhaps the Madagascar hissing cockroach — is better off for it. I know of one store in my home town that sells nothing but organic product, all the while selling plenty of organic product. To give you an idea of the magnitude of this niche, go to the internet, specifically to www.google.com and type "organic pest control" in the search box. You’ll receive roughly 5,080,000 options, each with products and/or information dedicated to the subject. Certainly, many of you have already done your homework — heck, you’re already acing the test! We would love to hear from you. Are organics a way to go? The way? Click on the link to our blog to let us know what you think.