Hornets' Nest

My general contractor happened onto an actual hornets' nest nestled among some of the massive boulders behind my house and was unmercifully stung on his ankle. We immediately treated his wound with a recently learned "grandmother's home remedy". It involves putting a small amount of baking soda on the wound and dousing it with vinegar. The vinegar foams up and, supposedly, pulls the poison out. Did it work? Who knows. Apparently the "cure" didn't decrease the pain. We also applied ice. Tough break for him, but he was an amazingly good sport.

I am sure that hornets have a beneficial effect in the world. After all, Mother Nature designed things that way. But I am not prepared to be open minded about hornets. They are distinctly unwelcome here unless they do laundry.