Spider drama

I'm not entirely sure what it is about my building, but spiders LOVE it. They can't get enough of it. They have formed entire communities on it and have chosen to rear their offspring here.

Also curious is how none of my neighbors seem to mind. Out of the 8 people on my side of the building, I'm the only one to ever sweep the outer hallways and stairs. My next door neighbors have literally five ginormous spiders hanging around right outside of their door. How they manage to get in and out without disturbing the webs is beyond me. Luckily, I do not need to go past their condo to get to the stairwell.

Unfortunately, the spiders have met their match with me. I hate them. Always have. I don't mind if they're out in the bushes or make their home on a lamp post. But, I have no sympathy when they decide to bridge the concrete path from wilderness to civilization - namely, my civilization. To give you an idea of what I'm working with, our condo doorways are on the outside of the building, and each neighbor has a sort of front door area connected by common outdoor walkways. There are two stairwells on either side of the building. On the ground floor, there is a courtyard area with flowers, bushes, and trees.

Yesterday after having run through yet another spider web on my way back to my condo, I had it. L. and I went to Home Depot, and bought some regular ol' spray insecticide and a broom. This may seem a tad overkill, but it's not.

Last year, I tried to battle the little devils with a broom alone, merely sweeping away their webs and coaxing them into the perfectly agreeable yard area in front of the condos. The next day, it was like it had never happened. They were all back in their happy little places. I tried once more, this time squishing the little buggers (quick and painless death) instead of showing them new real estate. This had a little better effect, but wasn't a great solution since there were always ones in hiding that I'd miss, and then they'd just come back with a few of their best friends. So, I finally broke down and bought some insecticide, and it worked like a charm. I could safely make my way up the stairs to my place without running smack dab into a spider or its web. But, all good things must come to an end and they return each year. Hence our trip to Home Depot yesterday.

Now, I didn't do the whole building. If my neighbors want to be a spider haven, so be it. As long as it doesn't interfere with my coming and going, I'll leave their space alone. What I did do, however, was spray my whole window and door with the insecticide, and then made my way down the stairwell. I also sprayed my downstairs neighbor's window and door area since they are gone most of the year and have no means to keep up their area - which I must pass to get to my place and which the spiders really love. I also sprayed the common area entryway from the parking lot, around the storage door, and around the light globes there.

As I was doing this, one of my neighbors from the other side of the building came to get something out of storage. Our conversation went something like this:

Him: "Spraying for spiders?"
Me: "Yup."
Him: "Ah. Lots of 'em this year."
Me: "Yeah. I can't stand them."
Him: "Yeah, but at least they eat mosquitoes."
Me: "True. I just wish that they'd stay out of the general area where we have to walk so that I don't have to wear spider webs all the time."
Him: "Yup."

So, what I gather from this particular exchange and the general disinterest of my neighbors is that I am the crazy spider-killing lady in the upstairs condo. I cannot fathom how everyone else is fine walking through spider webs. It truly is beyond me. But, I just cannot handle it. If I owned my own home, I would certainly keep the doorway and porch free of spider webs and spiders, because it just looks unkempt anyway. Who wants to venture into someone's house if they have to duck underneath webs?

But, back to my story. In an interesting twist, as I was making L.'s hot chocolate this morning, I noticed a big, ugly spider on the ceiling in my kitchen. Here, I sprayed the heck outside of my condo and then one guy got in. I paused for a moment, wondering if I should call L. in to take care of it, but then I changed my mind. I couldn't risk having the thing disappear. And, as a lifetime observation, I've noticed that the men in my life aren't particularly adept at this task even though I usually defer this little job to them. I think it's because they're missing the sense of urgency and utter worry that comes from missing the target and then wondering where you'll meet up again. This has absolutely nothing to do with L. and everything to do with my wacky fear of spiders.

So, I picked up a wad of napkins and jabbed at it, hoping to smash it directly. But it was quick and swooped down on its silky web to the cabinet. I swiped again, and this time it hit the floor. Then it was over in a crunch. That's the part that I both love and hate the most; I hate the sound and the feeling, but love the outcome.

This may sound silly, but I do hope that the spiders died quickly and relatively painlessly. That's probably asking a lot, considering it is insecticide, but I don't like to see things suffer - even spiders. Even though we don't get along, I understand that they are important and I need to coexist with them. I just don't want to do it in and around my home.