I have never shared a sheet with a bedbug, myself, and I've been in some sketchy, sketchy places where scuttling in corners by more-than-four-legged things was a given (edited to add: in fact, I had to step light to avoid a cockroach in my London hotel's bathroom this very morning).

As part of normal dual living in budget digs, I've roomed with lizards on walls and ceilings, of course (gotta love geckos); palmetto bugs in my hair, you bet. Spiders, ants in my sleeping bag (a whole column in Joshua Tree one night) -- all totally standard. If you're living on the even slightly adventurous side of the road, you've probably slept with it, even if you can't name it.

Bedbugs, though -- ewww. That's a horse of a different bite. And they're popping up (double ewww) in hotels everywhere, including some pretty posh places.

PestControlCanada.com writes of bedbug hotel infestations: "The stigma attached to these parasites is influencing some hotels and other accommodations to ignore infestations or treat them without professional help. Lack of professional treatment comes with great risks, notably the possibility of litigation."

The folks at Hotelchatter.com have been posting bedbug stories with a vengeance for a while now (I've been following it, and I did look closely under the covers in a Brussels hotel last week after seeing a suspicious spot, thanks to Hotelchatter.com's friendly reporting on the bedbug-eyeballing details), and Dateline NBC recently featured Hotelchatter's quest for the downlow on the buggers' current residences and travel habits. If you've got a story, let 'em give it some lovin' hate.

• Read Hotelchatter.com's bedbug coverage
• Bedbugs biting budget hoteliers
• Read more than you ever wanted to know about bedbugs and get bedbug battle tips
• All About Bedbugs
• Read a Hostel FAQ -- bedbugs are not as common as your mother thinks

_{Bed bug photo copyright Pest Control Canada}