Just Ask Julie

Hey Julie,You give a lot of good advice on many subjects, but I know you will not be able to help me on this one. In this day and age of technology, why can’t we invent better bacon packaging? - Chris P., George West

Hi Chris! There are so many examples of frustrating packaging, and bacon is certainly one of the worst. Seems like the “open here” corner never wants to come apart, then when it does the whole pack pops open and you’re covered in bacon juice. If you don’t use the whole package the leftovers turn gray in the fridge from too much air exposure, and with the cost of groceries these days we don’t want to waste anything! I have seen some of the larger packs with zipper closures, but the ones I’ve tried don’t zip well and let in air also. I looked online, and there are several inexpensive plastic storage containers (search ‘bacon keeper’ on your favorite shopping site) that might solve your problem. I doubt we’ll be able to affect change in the bacon industry as the companies who supply our food and household needs base these decisions on packaging cost, space saving and discouraging shoplifting, and not on our convenience. My own personal worst packaging award has to go to the hard plastic clamshell that batteries are sold in...if you don’t have a large pair of scissors or a knife on hand, you’ll never get to those stinkers and you may still injure yourself in the process! Of course, the easiest solution for not having leftover graying bacon in the fridge is to just cook and eat the entire package…I learned that one from my 9-year-old grandson who could accomplish this feat every day if we let him. But like we learned from Curly’s sudden death in the movie City Slickers, you just can’t eat bacon every day!

Dear Julie, I heard some weird noises on my porch the other night and turned the light on to find dozens of large insects swarming. Is this a biblical plague of locusts or some other phenomenon? - Suzanna L., Aransas Pass

Hi Suzanna, What you may have seen is being referred to by scientists as the 2024 Cicada Double Brood, a rare event that occurs when two groups of periodical cicadas emerge at the same time from their underground homes. One group develops on a 13-year cycle and the other on a 17-year cycle, and they haven’t synchronized to emerge at the same time in the United States since 1803 when Thomas Jefferson was president, according to entomologist Gene Kritsky who has written a book about this year’s phenomenon. Periodical cicadas spend most of their lives underground feeding on tree roots, only emerging when fully grown to spend the warm summer months in a noisy search for a mate. Texas and Louisiana seem to host the majority of these broods, likely due to the warm temperatures and proximity to water. Once the mating process has completed, these loud insects reach the end of their lifespan, and when cooler temperatures arrive, the swarms and noise should disappear. While the 13- and 17-year cycles will continue, we won’t see the same noisy swarms you describe for another 221 years, so we’ll let the great, great, great grandkids worry about the next one!