Creepy Crawlies

[Booghead]

I am 17 and I am highly afraid of all squirmy little things. Most girls hate spiders but spiders are nothing in comparison to millipedes or grasshoppers. In my opinion the more they crunch, the more they should be feared.

Thank goodness we don't have cockroaches here, I would die of fright. I hate gardening because of the bugs, snails and worms. Several years ago when I was probably 9 or 10 I saw an episode of Untold Stories of the ER, in this episode a man came in with a bee stuck in his ear. IN HIS EAR. It was moving around, inside of his ear. Thanks to that and "earwigs" I sleep with a blanket over my ear, I can not go to sleep without it.

My parents joke that I better get rid of it before I get married, I tell them a man will love me for who I am, blankie and all. lol

You guys have any stories?

[love2travel]

I am 17 and I am highly afraid of all squirmy little things. Most girls hate spiders but spiders are nothing in comparison to millipedes or grasshoppers. In my opinion the more they crunch, the more they should be feared.

Thank goodness we don't have cockroaches here, I would die of fright. I hate gardening because of the bugs, snails and worms. Several years ago when I was probably 9 or 10 I saw an episode of Untold Stories of the ER, in this episode a man came in with a bee stuck in his ear. IN HIS EAR. It was moving around, inside of his ear. Thanks to that and "earwigs" I sleep with a blanket over my ear, I can not go to sleep without it.

My parents joke that I better get rid of it before I get married, I tell them a man will love me for who I am, blankie and all. lol

You guys have any stories?

I am fascinated by creatures and have almost a scientific view of them so am not afraid of them. EXCEPT in our house in Croatia (it is very old and stone exterior and interior) sometimes has scorpions crawling on the walls and floors. Now those things are crunchy and take more than one whack to kill them. My husband is in charge of that. Thankfully they are not poisonous but I have heard that the sting hurts quite badly. There are also jumping spiders that you likely would hate - you try to kill them and they jump straight up into the air - probably about two feet so they are hard to get. Very weird. Not very crunchy, though. There are lots of snakes in the area, too, but never in the houses. Now those things give me the willies when I see them close up.

Having said all that, I so love our house and I love Croatia so it is a small sacrifice to make. It is so worth it!

[curlyfries]

My DD is 26 and married and still sleeps with her blankie

The thing I hate most about spiders is that they can be hanging from the ceiling and be at eye level Jumping spiders???? No way....can't do it!

Centipedes creep me out big time....all those legs!!!And they can get big!

No crunch factor considered here because we usually catch and release.....accompanied by much screaming,involuntary shivers, and extreme paranoia (This all would be me, of course, as the little buggers don't make an appearance when hubby is home)

Have had some success teaching the dog and cat to take care of them, but still too many escape whilst they are busy trying to identify the species and observing survival instincts.

[alex11602]

My 5 year old daughter will get rid of the bugs before I will (I can't stand them)...I jump and scream when my sister throws those plastic spiders at me.

[beebs]

I in regional australia - too many to mention to be honest, lots of poisonous spiders around red backs, white tails, black house spiders, funnel webs. Haven't seen any snakes this summer yet though, so that is good. Hate spiders though - I get the heebies really bad. The other night I shone a torch to open up the back fence and there were 20 little eyes glowing at me! It was only a huntsman and they aren't anything to worry about - but they look awful you know? If you have ever seen arachnophobia they are the spiders they used in that because they aren't poisonous or aggressive = but they can get as big as your hand. Ugh!

Re jumping spiders - Funnel webs can jump 3 meters - they can also survive underwater for 48 hours and people find them alive after they have been chucked in with a load of washing, they are the most dangerous spiders on earth and extremely aggressive, how them I despise! Haven't seen one in about 10 years but I do get the heebies when I have to do something in the garden...ekk

[curlyfries]

Forgot to mention the black widows when we lived in Tucson. Had to check your shoes before putting them on and be careful when reaching into the mailbox. Hubby once found a nest of them under our bed.

[Roda]

We have black widows and the brown recluse spiders here in TN.

My hubby is the one who is creeped out the most over any insect. It's the feel of the legs and the stickiness of some of them that get him or them squirming. He gets the willies when the boys and I watch the show Infested.

For me I don't like rodents. My cat brought in a mole nosed shrew. She let it go and it was running around my living room. The cat then just ignored it and the dog was afraid. I was up on a chair having a canary when it woke up my boys. They were looking for it trying to "save" mom. It was too funny watching them in their boxers with their nerf swords waiting to wack it. We managed to trap it under a box and let it go outside. Oh, and did I mention it stunk too?

[pricklypear1971]

Bugs dont freak me out....EXCEPT COCKROACHES/PALMETTO BUGS. A side effect from a FL childhood. Had one crawl up my leg once and I will never ever forget that...,

And do y'all know what one smells like when you crush it?? Amaretto. The first time someone served me amaretto I almost vomited on the spot.

Aside from that, bugs don't bug me. Neither do spiders as long as I know what I'm dealing with.

Now, what really gets me are freaking jumping chollas. Yep, cacti. They don't technically jump but they manage to get me every single time. Their buds fall off and you step on them, dog steps on them, kids step on them....we have dedicated "cholla pluckers" tweezers and I'm scared to go out without them.

Before you roll your eyes, they have a spur on the end. So its like tugging on a stick pin (when the head is stuck under your skin). And did I mention my neighborhood is in a "field" of the fu($ers???

And did I mention I think they have something in them that I have an allergic reaction to?? Almost all Sonoran plants have great defenses (immediate and delayed, apparently).

Ok, and snakes. Don't like 'em. But as long as I know where they are I leave them alone and hope for the same in return.

[bigbird16]

OMG, Beebs, I think I'd curl up in a ball sucking my thumb if I saw a spider that jumped three meters! Big spiders freak me out -- like wolf spiders and golden silk spiders and brown recluses. Little ones are ok. I just squish them if they're poisonous and leave them be if they're sweet little housespiders. Sometimes I'll actually feed small bugs to the little housespiders that have webs in corners.

Pricklypear, I grew up in Florida, too. Our house had a problem with palmetto bugs. I hated it when they would fly or get on me. And the crunchy squish -- soooooo gross!

Otherwise I'm kinda fascinated by bugs.

[bartfull]

Grizzly bears. That's what scares me!

Actually, having moved to the Black Hills from Connecticut, there were a lot of things I had to get used to. We didn't HAVE poisonous spiders in Connecticut. Out here we have black widows and brown recluses and some poisonous yellow spider whose name escapes me. I never used to kill spiders because they ate mosquitoes, but out here I kill any spider I see because it MIGHT be a poisonous one. And we DON'T have mosquitoes.

We didn't have poisonous snakes back there either. Oh, occasionally someone might spot a copperhead, but you can smell them from a long way away (they smell like cucumbers) so they were never a problem. Here in the Hills we have rattlesnakes. LOTS of them.

Oh yeah, we have mountain lions too. I've never been lucky enough to see one, but we do get them right here in town. A few years ago they shot one right across the street from my shop.

But I wasn't kidding (too much) about the grizzly bears. They are worse than a cat when it comes to "playing with" their victims. I read a story in the Reader's Digest when I was a kid, about a woman hiker who was attacked. This bear played with her for DAYS before she was finally rescued (and insane). We don't have Grizzlies in the Hills. Yet. If we ever do, I'm moving.

[IrishHeart]

I am only afraid of things I can't squish to death or outrun.

Otherwise, I am a live and let live kind of girl.

We have all kinds of oogey things here in the countryside (and I grew up in the city and never even saw half this stuff in my life!) and I have had to pick up---and put back outside--- birds, mice, chipmunks, bugs of all sorts, a frog, a snake, moles, voles, a squirrel and a bat. (cats think they are hilarious bringing that stuff in)

I just learned to co-exist. You should see our walls when the ladybugs hatch in the spring...covered. But at least they are cute.

And...when that bear came to the feeders, I took his picture first before scaring him off.

I am not one to go for the rifle first.

The one thing that still makes me shudder?

A cockroach. Vile things. (yuck) But I only saw those in the city.

[love2travel]

Grizzly bears. That's what scares me!

Actually, having moved to the Black Hills from Connecticut, there were a lot of things I had to get used to. We didn't HAVE poisonous spiders in Connecticut. Out here we have black widows and brown recluses and some poisonous yellow spider whose name escapes me. I never used to kill spiders because they ate mosquitoes, but out here I kill any spider I see because it MIGHT be a poisonous one. And we DON'T have mosquitoes.

We didn't have poisonous snakes back there either. Oh, occasionally someone might spot a copperhead, but you can smell them from a long way away (they smell like cucumbers) so they were never a problem. Here in the Hills we have rattlesnakes. LOTS of them.

Oh yeah, we have mountain lions too. I've never been lucky enough to see one, but we do get them right here in town. A few years ago they shot one right across the street from my shop.

But I wasn't kidding (too much) about the grizzly bears. They are worse than a cat when it comes to "playing with" their victims. I read a story in the Reader's Digest when I was a kid, about a woman hiker who was attacked. This bear played with her for DAYS before she was finally rescued (and insane). We don't have Grizzlies in the Hills. Yet. If we ever do, I'm moving.

Although we do not see many Grizzlies, we see lots of black bears. I have so many bear experiences! On our honeymoon a black bear was on the roof of our cabin so we were sort of scared to go out. The park rangers managed to see it and get it down (we had to wait for ages - no cell phones then!). That night two people who were tenting near us got KILLED, mauled to death. It was in a Reader's Digest, too. We read about it later and recognized the names and the situation.

When babysitting I saw a mountain lion in the yard so obviously I came up with ways to keep the kids inside!

In Croatia there are two kinds of poisonous snakes around - a horned viper and a...what the heck...can't think of the name. People do get killed by them but it is very rare. I know the difference between the poisonous and non-poisonous snakes. We asked about it very early on. Last May we saw snakes 14 times in three weeks. Not all close to the house but some were. None poisonous.

Guess what? The first time sleeping in our Croatia house there was a horrific sound on the roof all night that kept us wide awake. It sounded like a horse running back and forth on the tiles. There was a lot of banging around and running. Of course a horse cannot get on the roof but that is how it sounded - like something big. When we asked the neighbours they laughed and told us it was a kuna racing around on the roof, chasing insects. They lift up old tiles and gather up what is there to eat. Well, that summer we replaced our tiles and now have brand new ones that look old on our roof. No more running horses!

And one more thing - an edible dormouse was in our house, hanging from the exposed beams, looking down at us. They are sort of cute but not in the house! We had a very hard time capturing that sucker. It is about a foot long with a fluffy tail and gigantic eyes.

[ravenwoodglass]

Well after reading some of these posts I now know places I don't want to move to. LOL

I find most critters fascinating. But I live in an area that doesn't have a whole lot of things that will poison or eat me.

I do remember Palmetto bugs really well from when I lived in Florida. I lived in a spilt trailer and if I sprayed they would go next door. When my neighbor sprayed they would come to my place. If we both sprayed they would just go under the trailer and wait for the fumes to go away. I ate almost all meals at the bar-restaurant I ran so I didn't even have much food in the house. It was at least 2 years after I moved up north before I could open a cupboard door without reflexivly jumping back.

We do have brown bears but those poor guys are more something to feel sorry for when they come to town. It seems like every spring a young one will wander into a town or two and get trapped up a tree terrified of all the people. It usually doesn't end well.

My son and I both like snakes. When he was little he caught a garter snake that we brought in and made part of the family. After he had it a couple weeks we woke up one morning to baby snakes. One of them was 2 headed. I was hopeing it would survive but it only lived a couple of days. We did eventually give mom and babies their freedom.

[Booghead]

Yuck, after reading your stories I'm got crawlies all over me. As for Bears, I've only seen one at the zoo and they are lovely. We are getting a "water" exhibit this year it will have seals,otters, and of course polar bears. I'm fortunate to live in such a small place but have such a wonderful zoo nearby.

We have brown recluses, black widows, and Hobo spiders. I would guess I have probably been bitten by the ladder, went outside barefoot one night in the summer and woke up the next day with a red bite on my foot, 2 distinct little holes (fangs). I can still see the mark after I shower six months later. We have snakes, but none are poisonous and since we moved a few miles north we haven't seen any. Too damp or swampy where we live now.

I love little critters. We have Muskrats, Otters, along with Skunks and Coons. I've never seen either in person but they do live right around our house. I help pick the corn sometimes in the summer (I quit helping when I saw earwigs) and we spot pieces that the raccoons eat. Grandpa tells me about the traps he catches them in and how he sticks them in bags with stones and throws them into the canal. It breaks my heart. Everyone tells me how mean they are and how nasty they are but I just want to hug them all. I'm an animal lover, we have a dog and a cat so I just think coons look just like little chubby baby's. Skunks I can live without.

We don't have fleas or ticks here so that its good. In the deserts we have cougars and in the mountains we have mountain lions. Bison and Elk, are common. 20 minutes drive from my house is antelope island. I haven't gone to antelope island because the antelope are only visible in summer time and in summer time the island is filled with mosquitos and nats. Even if you are in a car you get them in throw the air conditioners.

We have a neighborhood Peacock. You can here it all the time, I don't know if they fly away in the winter but you can't hear them or see them in the winter. I've never seen one fly, if you chase them they just run and squawk. We try to scare them so a feather will fall out, or we try to grab one and yank it. Trouble is those darn peacocks are too stinking fast.