I have had ants and spiders crawl up my arms and legs--or on my bed and in my nose. I woke up choking on a little spider once. We have bugs so small that they fit through the tiny squares in the window screens. Every month seems to bring it's own set of different species.
This is the year of the spiders. Lots and lots of spiders. Big spiders, little spiders. Most of all, this is the year of the Black Widow.
I started noticing them in the beginning of the month when my husband and oldest boys were in Rome (of course!). The webs are three dimensional, haphazard looking, and very, very sticky.
The first one I saw was suspended on a web off of a front porch slat. I was calling the dogs late at night and noticed it. I couldn't give it a hit it with my slipper because it would have just pushed it away. So, the brilliant person that I am when put on the spot, I ran inside and grabbed two fly swatters. The idea was to slam Ms. Widow between them. I'm not afraid of spiders like some people I know (there is a certain creepy factor, though), but I didn't want to risk a Black Widow flying down my shirt and biting me while I was the only adult here with the children.
As soon as one swatter touched the super sticky web, it shook the trap and scared the spider up under the porch rail. The next day, I took a stick and tried to scare it out, but I didn't find it. When my husband returned, I told him that, if he looked out the window at night, he'd see a Black Widow on the porch. Right on schedule, she came out and my husband introduced her to the bottom of his shoe.
Since then, I've spotted the very obvious web between the mailboxes, in several places in the garage, inside the backyard toy box, near the hoses, in the garden, between the trees, and just about everywhere--except inside the house. That's because every other type of spider is sharing our quarters. They're after the ants and other myriad of bugs.
I think my worst experience here with a spider was when I was entering my lav and I noticed that a large one was hanging on a web descending directly down to the toilet. If I had sat down a second earlier, it would have landed on my head! I killed it, but now I check for hanging attackers every time I visit my little
I know that one day, I just won't worry about it anymore. I don't know when, though, because I still check the toilet for snakes. You see, when I was about seven years old, the media reported extensively on a woman who found a snake in her toilet. It came up from the sewer. Police, fire, media, and helicopters were dispatched to her house. So I still look for them inside the bowl--just in case. It's been 36 years.
I wonder if I'll remember to check for spiders when I'm 79.
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UPDATE #1: OK, you may not believe this, but, directly after writing the post above, I walked into my bedroom. I thought it might be nice, on such a beautiful evening, to open the window and get some cool air. When I pulled up the blinds, I found a spider suspended in front of the exterior of the glass, spinning a web. My children, who were playing outside at the time, were called over for this science class. The spider couldn't care less that we were making noise around it, as it seemed in a hurry to complete it's trap (it must have been dinner time). Very cool.
Here, see for yourselves:
UPDATE #2: Yesterday, my husband had to clean the exterior of the mailbox by wiping away the webs and spiders. Thinking it was safe, he pulled out the mail and started to scan for
Today, it was my turn to pick up the mail. I stopped the car and sent my son out (only because he loves to get the mail and not because I didn't want to stick my hand in the
When will the carnage end?
