Regular readers who are also my Facebook friends may be aware of the big spiders I photographed in my bathroom sink both Thursday and Friday morning.
Pretty much unless I’m breaking through a web with my face, spiders don’t really bother me, but as a courtesy to my wife, I removed each of these specimens from the sink before riding off to work. (Caught them, alive, in an insulated beer can holder, and released them in the yard, in case you were wondering; I just don’t ever kill anything unless I have to).
But while the eight-legged critters, as I said, don’t necessarily affect me, I don’t like to be surprised by them, as I was Saturday when I went to pull on my Chuck Taylors before leaving for work. There was a decently large one on the underside of one of the tongues, and discovering it there, well, did get my adrenaline going a bit.
Though not as much as the time I found a huge spider in my bathroom cup (don’t use a bathroom cup anymore; my hands work just fine).
Or when I realized there was a live bat clinging to the sack of nails I’d just grabbed off a shelf in our barn (talk about instant willies).
Or when I discovered a bat while unrolling a curtain inside a rental house we looked at once. (We opted against the place.)
Or when I found myself nose-to-nose with a sleeping possum, all curled up in insulation, when I stuck my head inside our well’s pump house on a freezing winter day. I don’t mind possums per se, but that surprise encounter took a few years off my life. At least he remained asleep, or he might’ve taken off my nose as well
2 comments
stevelundeberg says:
Sep 28, 2009
Below is a comment from a reader named Amy, who was unable to log in to comment, so she sent her thoughts via email instead. Thank you, Amy:
"This does seem to be the time of year when the big spiders come in. We used to have the same problem of finding them in the bathroom. One time when my younger son was about a year old, I sat him in the tub to wiggle his toes in the water as the tub filled up. I left for a few seconds to grab his PJs when I heard him calling me in a frightened tone. I rushed back to the bathroom and there was one of those huge spiders on his thigh. It must have been in the spout and came out with the water.
Anyway, we did some investigating, and my husband went up on the roof and put insect screen over all the plumbing vents. This was about 9 years ago, and we have had very few big spiders in the house ever since. We also have a lot less flies that used to seem to gather in the bathrooms. Somehow they must have been coming down the vents and in through the overflow drains that don't go through the trap. This is just a theory, but it sure made a difference for us."
CateHahn says:
Sep 28, 2009
Spiders don't bother me too much, but I freak at anything small and furry: mice, gerbils, etc. When I was in my teens I went out to the shed to get the dog food. As I reached in the bag, a shrew ran up my sleeve. Since I was wearing a parka, it couldn't find a way out so I peeled off my coat, screeching the entire time. My dad shot out of the house thinking I was under attack (as far as I'm concerned I was!) and the dog team started howling. I'm not sure who was more traumatized – me or the shrew – but I never saw it in the shed again! Better yet, my brother had to feed the dog after that ! : )