I learned several years ago that Oklahoma grows some big spiders. Moving back this past June I was pleasantly surprised when we barely had any spiders in our house. I naively assumed the spiders (and other bugs) knew that there was a large water source, in the form of a pond, not more than 30 yards from my house. Why bother with coming into my home and risk death when they could meander a bit further for water. Oh yes I was in a state of ignorant bliss.
Then the scorpions showed up. I had heard rumors that they were in our new neighborhood here but didn't really believe it.
The couple scorpions in the garage I could handle that. The one in the upstairs bathroom . . . well it was on the wall and "tiny" according to Clark.
My bliss was rudely shattered a week ago while making our bed. A 2 inch long scorpion had attached itself to the quilt that had fallen onto the floor and decided to make the trip to the top of the bed. My screams brought everyone running. Somehow in the process the scorpion slipped away unnoticed. Now instead of making the bed I was dismantling it as quickly as possible. We couldn't find the scorpion. All day our room was on quarantine. Clark practically fumigated the entire house and yard per my frantic request.
By evening I was so tired I decided that my room had to be safe. I ventured in and out twice before I discovered the scorpion I nearly stepped on. The kids were oddly fascinated as they watched Clark kill it. Yuck!
At this point I'm terrified to walk around at night because if you didn't know, scorpions are nocturnal creatures. We told that to the kids in an attempt to placate them. I think that scared them more than anything. I want to install flood lights in my bedroom and bathroom for those eventual night time visits to the toilet. Clark was hoping I would find comfort in a black light that makes scorpions glow florescent green. That creeped me out even more.
All had been quiet for a week until this morning I found a scorpion attempting to hid by my shoes. I think Clark was a bit put off when I told him I smashed the thing repeatedly with his shoe. Hey, they seemed heavier.
Surprisingly, I've been managing to keep any bladder issues under control today. I learned the rumor about tarantulas in our neighborhood are true too. I walked out my front door and found a large black one crawling up my front steps. [Insert shuddering here.] I'm pretty grateful for the painters who were here at that moment. They excitedly checked it out then scooped it into a bucket and carried it across the street and dumped it in a vacant lot. I should have taken a picture but I was too busy trying to keep my body under control.
Hopefully we won't hear rumors of snakes.
2 comments:
Thank you for not posting pictures!! That's awful - I hate bugs, creepy crawlies and anything that doesn't belong in my house that seems to find it's way inside. I used Jeff's shoe and drop it on the crickets I find in the bathroom after they've hidden their all night making noise.....earwigs and flies I can handle, spiders and scorpions - not gonna happen. good luck!
I live in Colonial Estates in the 1st ward. We have mutual friends. We live on the south edge of the neighborhood next to fields and a creek. I hope I don't speak too soon but we haven't had scorpions or tarantulas, but we have had snakes! I had to chuckle when you "lost" the scorpion in your house. We "lost" a snake in our house a few years ago. He was spotted by our adult girls as they were going to bed one night. The darlings resisted waking us and merely put a towel across the bottom of the door and shut the door. The following day we searched and searched for that snake but to no avail. You can imagine my concern knowing there was a snake loose in our home! Several days later I found him just as I was going to bed nestled near the cannery food storage boxes in my walk-in closet! We weren't as kind as your workmen, he is dead! Blunt-force trauma, in the closet, by a shovel, and it wasn't Mrs. White or Miss Peacock!
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