Annoyance and Ewwww.

This time of year can be "insect" frustrating. I seem to have driven the ants from the house. I sprayed around some of the perimeter of the house, the part I could reach. I've walked the foundation trying to find the ant hills. If you disturb them, they move on their own and you don't have to spray. Because the cats don't go outside, I'm less worried about them dragging insecticide inside on their paws and then ingesting it.

The June bugs are gone but we're approaching the time of the evening moths, millers, we called them, come inside. The girls love to catch those. I just have to have more than one light on or I can get a cat on top of the keyboard when I least expect it. Generally, I'll catch it and toss it outside to prevent catastrophes of them leaping against something.

I haven't had many flies in the house this year which is directly attributable to the fact that these two don't go outside so the back door is not wide open waiting for a cat to come and go. The few times we've been outside, such as me cleaning out the car, they go back in when I'm done. Flies are hunted with the same verve as moths.

I'm not outside at dusk or dawn so I've not had problems with mosquitoes and again, without the back door standing wide open and the air conditioning on for the last 2 weeks, they aren't getting in the house.

What is happening is that baby spiders are hatching. You know those. Female spiders made egg nests at the end of last month and then died. The eggs are hatching into baby spiders about the size of the period at the end of this sentence. They send out a stream of silk and flow with air currents, landing wherever the silk catches hold. Your house can appear to be the cleanest place on earth and you'll still get baby spiders.

I get into the Jeep in the morning and a baby spider has created a lovely webbing from the steering wheel to the rear view mirror through the open window. (sigh) That's got to go. I'm taking a phone message and a baby spider lands on the note pad. (sigh) Crunch. I go into the basement to do a load of wash and baby spiders have hatched around the light by the laundry chute, dozens of them. (sigh) Crunch again.

What really irritated me was making supper tonight. I was outside in the heat and humidity and then stuck in traffic on the way home. I decided I didn't have enough energy to even nuke something so I was making a peanut butter sandwich. As I was spreading the peanut butter, a baby spider landed ON MY SAMMICH! Of course, it got stuck in the peanut butter. It was large enough to see but too small to effectively remove without crushing it. I had to throw the whole thing out.

I was playing the game tonight and one landed on the back of my hand. I do like spiders. If one is in the house, I try to catch it and toss it outside where they can work their spiderly goodness and eat noxious insects. I tried to shake this small fleck off my hand, but it stubbornly clung to my skin. Finally, I just smashed it.

In a couple of weeks, this will all be over and I don't have to deal with spiders until they start coming inside where it's warm in late October. I don't harbor ill will against them, I just wish they'd look where they are sailing. That was a great sandwich.

Beverage: Dr Pepper

Deb