Please hit delete if you are tired of spiders.

On Thu, 4 Sep 1997, Michael Price wrote:

> Hi Tweets,

*Lots of great stuff snipped for space. Sorry!*
>
> My fave was the time I was reading at my desk late at night and my
> peripheral vision told me that a section of the floor had suddenly decided
> to go for a walk. In the spirit of true scientific inquiry, I thought: I'm
> not gonna look over there; I want my mommy. With great will, I looked
> directly at the biggest house spider I've ever seen. Eventually caught it
> (trap it under a drinking glass and slip a piece of stiff paper underneath
> it, escort to nearest door or window, open, thank it for visiting, heave). I
> measured the hideous little rascal before taking it to the door and giving
> it the bum's rush, and it was 5 *inches* across with a 1"-long body.
>
> >(In this case, all spiders
> >are welcome in my house
>
> Here, too. Especially those nifty little jumping spiders, the zebra
> (Salticus scenicus) and the larger one that's really beautiful: midnight
> black except for a brilliant scarlet back--the colors remind me of a Roman
> Catholic cardinal--called, I think, Phidippus something.

These sound really cool. I've found some amazing garden spiders as well,
light green and yellow, and *small* ;).

>
> Yes, House Spider, Tegenaria domestica. Maybe I'm looking at some old
> taxonomy, but it seems to be the same species as the House Spider in Europe
> and the UK. Otherwise, I'd settle for Charlotte and her children.

They seem different, or perhaps the common spider I met in the UK was not
the House Spider. The one I saw were ... thicker, is the best
description. They weren't bigger, but both body and legs had more mass.
Same size, though, about five inches.

> >I have had a fear of spiders since childhood

Actually, I haven't, I was always fascinated by them. But then I got a
lot of spider bites one time, followed by nausea for days, and, presto! my
reactions to even the smallest ones changed. It probably was the flu, but
my body blames spiders. I'm trying to revive the fascination and respect,
but those large spiders so far defy all efforts.

>
> Yeah, me, too. In spite of it--no law says I've gotta hug the little
> monsters--I'm fascinated by how spiders live and look, and amazed at their
> many astounding adaptations, and have learned to admire and 'like' them.
> Besides, they're part of--um, the Great Web of Life, if that doesn't sound
> too overblown. That helps to de-program the fear and revulsion a little, so
> even when I'm giving the roust to a large spider, I still do so with the
> respect due another living creature. Partly such fear *may*, as some
> scientists think, be an instinctive survival aid, but nobody's born
> terrified of spiders. Most of it's taught. Someone taught you and I to be
> terrified of spiders: we didn't start off that way.
>
> >and
> >although I leave most spiders alone to do their thing, this is one
> >spider I can't handle. Even my two kittens aren't too keen on them.
>
> Kittens are right to be cautious about any other animal until they know it's
> safe; this is instinctive until they're sure the critter's innocuous.

Just another aside: My adult cat, with years of experience, will not
approach the biggest spiders. Other ones, sure (he doesn't go outside,
ever, so spiders are pretty exciting), he loves those, but if he sees a
House Spider, he looks to me for help.

> >I'd like to know more about this spider.
> >Does anyone have any info?
>
> Good for you! Acknowledge your fear but don't let it stop you from learning
> about these neat little creatures! There's a really cool book called The
> Life of the Spider, by John Crompton, written in 1950. Though some
> old-fashioned attitudes occasionally crop up in it, mostly it's a witty,
> thoroughly charming and very informative book on the commoner families of
> spiders, including our pal the House Spider, Tegenaria domestica "...her one
> ambition is to destroy flies and other pests", he says. If you can find it
> in your library or bookstore, I think you'll find it quite instructive and
> helpful in seeing these creatures, not as objects of fear (although thanks
> to the people who saw to our training, some echoes of fear and disgust will
> likely always be in the background) but as fascinating and helpful little tykes.
>
>
> Michael Price The Sleep of Reason Gives Birth to Monsters
> Vancouver BC Canada -Goya
> mprice at mindlink.net

What a wonderful post, Michael! Thanks for all the information,
especially for us struggling arachnophobes.

Jackie Owens
Seattle, WA