Photo: Flickr user ninjapoodles

Years ago, I spent some time bicycling around parts of the country, pitching my tent wherever I could find a park or wilderness area. After a long day pedaling through the hills of Missouri, I headed for a state wildlife area that allowed camping, according to my map. When I finally found the sign designating the land, I was confused. Nothing but an overgrown field and some woods, as far as I could tell. I left my bike by the side of the road, and ventured through the waist-high weeds, looking for a trail.

Missouri, I quickly found, has a lot of ticks. Within a few minutes, my bare legs were crawling with them by the dozens. So I did what anyone would do - I totally freaked out. If there was a contest for tick flicking, I would have taken home the trophy. Since then, I've been a staunch follower of the rules of tick avoidance, though I still have the occasional nightmare.