Friday, October 17, 2014

"What It's Like To Run Into A Puppy-Sized Spider In The Middle Of The Night"

Business Insider: At first this is what I thought I saw — a big, hairy animal, the size of a rodent.

 

11 comments:

The Dude said...

He followed me home - can I keep him? Please?

ricpic said...

I've met many a wolf spider on the stairs on the way to the bathroom at 3 AM, especially during this period of the year when they come inside, but I always toughed it out, macho man that I yam.

Methadras said...

That is one big ass spider, but he's so cute.

Amartel said...

Oh Mummy I want one.
Furriness makes creatures that are otherwise horrifying seem cute.

Unknown said...

"Oh, how cute!", I thought when I first saw this adorable behavior, until a cloud of urticating hair hit my eyeballs, and made me itch and cry for several days.

Delightful.

It looks like it snacks on small puppies. Yikes.
Not on my bucket list: Walking alone in a South American Rain- forest, at night.

Unknown said...

You guys want one so you can scare the holy beejebus out of the fairer sex in your midst. I know how your minds work.

Rabel said...

Spiders are everywhere, April. It's said that you're never more than three feet away from a spider. The small ones crawl around on you while you sleep at night and you never even notice.

Unknown said...

shut up, Rabel!

Actually, my acute arachnophobia is much better now.
When I was young, including teens and early twenties, my heart would race and I would flush with panic at the mere sight of a spider. My mother always knew when there was a spider in the house because of the distinct squeal.

Now, I capture the cute little green ones and toss them outside. If it's winter, I'll place them in the garage. The garage is now spider heaven. A huge one lives behind the door. As I walk by, I tell him that he better not venture into the house or he's dead. Those are the rulz.
I kill only spiders I know are harmful: Brown recluse and black widow. Not many black widows around, thank heaven. But I killed what looked like a huge brown recluse hiding in the pine needles. bastard.

Mostly we have hobo spiders in the area. They are kinda cute with their stripes and googley eyes. Harmless.
The other day a tiny baby spider was dangling in my car while I was driving. I opened the window and I hoped it flew out. If not, I now have spiders living in my car. It's my own fault.

I lived In fort Collins in the late 1980's in a tiny old house. There was a spider infestation one summer and they were even nesting in my clothes in the closet. (the house was so small the bedroom was a converted garage - go figure) They were everywhere. I nearly died out of heart stopping panic. I couldn't sleep at night. The exterminator couldn't get there soon enough. I wanted to run screaming into the sunset.
For the most part I have conquered my fear. *That puppy-eating big thing in the rain forest would cause a relapse, though.* ;)

Chip Ahoy said...

I knew I have a photo of a big hairy spider.

By way of contrast, after a few dozen butterflies.

Karen and I went to the butterfly pavilion. They have a separate room for unusual insects.

I know, I KNOW spiders aren't insects.

Nonetheless the guide took out a big hairy spider to show up close and personal to a small group. I said to a six year old boy, I'm guessing, "I double-dog dare you to hold it." The boy said, "I want to!"

But the guide wasn't going to just turn over his giant spider into the palm of a boy. No, he lorded over the whole thing, refusing to remove his adult hand from the picture, right there ready to intervene should the boy do anything wrong. But, the kid got to hold a spider with my help and I got a photo a kid holding a spider with his help.

This is the sort of photograph I think a parent would be happy to have. My problem with that is I haven't yet polished my manner in obtaining their email address without coming off as somebody with something to sell. In this age of aggrieved privacy, it doesn't do to ask for their address. I'm working on that.

The truly stew-pud thing is, some button I pressed caused the photos I took to display on a grid and I didn't know what buttons to push to return to normal procedure so I stopped. It was at the end anyway. It's the dumbest thing. Nearly any button would have returned to normal. Also while there I encountered a woman with a similar camera and serious lens. I asked her what she decided for her camera settings. At this point I would be suggesting settings but then I had only impressions where to start and why. She said that she hadn't a clue. She shoots on automatic.

Karen and I timed it for the butterfly release. The butterfly release, the butterfly release, the butterfly release, the butterfly release, the butterfly release, finally a young woman pulled a butterfly from a box of butterflies and described it in detail to a group of people and then let it fly away inside the pavilion. Then another butterfly, another extended butterfly-description.

Then another butterfly, another extended butterfly-description. Then another butterfly, another extended butterfly-description. Then another butterfly, another extended butterfly-description, and so on until the box was depleted of butterflies.

I asked Karen, "When are are they going to do the butterfly release?" I was expecting a butterfly-spectical of thousands at once. Karen said, "That was it."

Amartel said...

Check out the butterfly exhibit at the Bellagio in Vegas if you're ever in the area. They're all in there gambling. Just kidding. It's pretty.

bagoh20 said...

So, if you sleep in the rainforest, do you unknowingly swallow 8 of these every year?

~

Has anyone considered that maybe it's just an ugly puppy?