Day 141: Another skirmish today. We didn’t take any casualties, but the enemy suffered a major setback. I was finishing up a production install for work. I needed to take a break and get something to drink. It was just after midnight. I got up from my desk and began to walk across the room to where I had my bottle of Coke sitting. This is what I saw staring up from the middle of the basement floor.
(that’s a quarter in the picture)
My two eyes locked with his eight. He didn’t budge, he didn’t flinch. He caught me with my guard down, I was unarmed and bare feet. I backed up a few steps to my desk to arm myself. I usually go for a can of compressed air and attempt to freeze the enemy, but this guy would be a hard shot. He was in between the coffee table and the sofa. If I hit him at the wrong angle with the compressed air, he would be propelled under either one and possibly flee the field of battle or be lost among broken crayons and Lego bricks. Instead, I grabbed the wooden ruler I keep under my desk for confrontations such as these. I hoped that he wouldn’t run while I was gone.
No, not this guy, he was still in the same spot when I returned. I approached slowly and when I was in range, I struck. I brought the ruler down slowly and crushed him down. Right before the ruler hit him, he reared up on his hind legs as if to parry the death blow. The soft chitinous crunch signified his defeat. He died in battle, he died with honor. He got flushed down the toilet (after a short photography sitting).
Does anyone know an arachnologist or an entomologist? I would really like to know what kind of spider this is. I checked out a few websites, but I couldn’t find anything that looked this guy. Is it poisonous? Should I be concerned? I am not concerned for myself, but I have three small children in the house, one of which does a lot of crawling about on the floor. I haven’t seen them anywhere else in the house other than the basement.
Day 142: All has been quiet. I try to post a regular watch, but my other duties have kept me distracted. I sometimes imagine I can hear the rustling of tiny bristled legs on the carpet. The lack of sleep and constant vigilance has put me on edge. I am jumping at shadows. Ironic that my enemy lives in the shadows. I don’t think I can keep up this pace. My faithful companion deserted me earlier today for the warmth of the spring sun. Damn him, my only companion now is the cold aluminum can of compressed air.
Should you not hear from me again, know that my enemies have organized a counter attack and I have succumbed to their overwhelming numbers. Know that I fought bravely, for home and family.
Did that sofa cushion just move? I think they are coming…
man, thats an ugly looking spider
ReplyDeleteWe have the same spiders as our house. We actually had Orkin come out to check them out. He said they're Wolf Spiders. They will bite, but he said they cause more pain than damage (read: not poisonous). We had them treat the basement anyway.
ReplyDelete