anything with more than 4 legs is bad.
2005-01-09, 5:09 p.m.
Yesterday I was standing in my kitchen just about to walk out the door when I noticed something on the wall above the stove. My heart started to pound and my hands got sweaty immediately. It was a 2� long (not counting the tail) scorpion. My hands are sweating again just typing this.
I am not a bug person. I had an episode with a praying mantis in VT that caused me to dance around in my underpants squealing and wielding a fly swatter. Praying Mantis� do not bite. Scorpions on the other hand can deliver a nasty sting. We have approximately 150 different varieties of scorpions in AZ. Most of them cause a nasty sting, swelling and irritation. 1 however is poisonous, the bark scorpion. That�s the extent of my knowledge. I cannot identify one from the other. So I go with my gut instinct. 2 or 4 legs good, more than 4 legs bad.
I ushered the dog and cat outside for safety, and went in search of the wind tunnel vacuum complete with hose attachment. In my past this has been a great tool for sucking up unwanted multi legged creatures. I located the vacuum in the hall closet plugged it in, and with trembling hands went to suck my intruder into wind tunnel hell. Much to my amazement, he stayed firmly stuck to the wall, curling his tail up in annoyance at me and my feeble attempts to dislodge him from his spot.
Okay�look around frantically for something large and heavy to smack him with. One thing worse than him being on the wall, is having him disappear in the house still alive. I had the Saturday paper on the table. I took 2 of the thickest sections rolled them up and delivered in my book what should have been a fatal swat. I successfully dislodged him and he dropped behind the stove�.creepier than that was the fact I heard him hit the ground.
Not being sure I delivered a fatal blow, I struggled to move the range out from the wall. Besides the years worth of grime left by previous tenants, a matchbox racer, plastic knife, dental floss, and some plastic grapes�.there he was. And he was still moving. He crawled between the tile and the sheet rock. But not out of my reach. I took the news paper, dislodged him from his attempt to hide and promptly jumped up and down on him multiple times doing a full body shiver at every crunch felt under my running shoes. I stomped him pancake flat, and then scraped him off the bottom of my shoe using the hose attachment to the vacuum.
Now I�m a very clean person. I�m freakishly clean. I�ve even had the house sprayed about 30 days ago for bugs. Scorpions love bugs; crickets are one of their favorites. I however have not heard or seen any bugs since I had the place sprayed. But I�m doing a few things I shouldn�t be doing. Like leaving the slider door open for the dog and cat when I run to the store. I also didn�t ask for the house to be �powdered� when it was sprayed. Now I�m stuck waiting until Wednesday or Thursday of this week for a bug guy to come out and powder the place and inspect making sure there are no nests. The exterminator assured me, that if I found this one in broad daylight there is a chance he was trying to escape poison someone else had put out. Bugs are not stupid; if they are dying they will not return to their nest. In addition this guy didn�t even move when I went after him. So that made the exterminator believe he was already poisoned. Great�did he have to pick my house to die in?
I spent the rest of the day abandoning my thoughts of leaving the house and opted to clean every corner of the house, with bleach. Not that bleach kills scorpions, but it made me feel better.
So, what did you do this weekend that was exciting?
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