Thursday, August 23, 2018

I Have No Words .......

Bet you thought you'd never hear THAT!!  Actually I had plenty of words to say when I got up at 4:00 and let the puppies out before wandering into the bathroom.  Wasn't I shocked when I looked in the mirror and saw THIS directly behind me.  I ran screaming into the bedroom.  I'm pretty sure my heart rate jumped up to 200 and my blood pressure went through the roof.

It sure woke me up in a hurry.  Really, when is this going to stop?  How are they getting in?  Afraid he would jump at me .... some of them do, you know .... I grabbed my five foot long swiffer cleaner and smashed him from a distance.  Of course that left a nice mess on the wall I had to clean up.
I tried to remain calm as I got on my hands and knees, scurrying around the entire perimeter of the house to see if I could find any holes they could crawl through.  I found nothing.  Not even under the doors.  I did buy a large bottle of turmeric and spread it around outside every door, hoping that would help.  My only thought was maybe they are coming down the fireplace chimney.  Please, I just want it to stop.

Once I regained my composure, I went to work on minor repairs around the house.  Having removed the broken bulbs from the ceiling fan, I purchased four more.  Weird though, they just didn't want to screw in easily like a light bulb should.  I sprayed them with a tad bit of WD40 and VOILA!  They went right in.  I hit the switch.

Maybe I used a tad bit too much WD40.  One bulb didn't work.  I screwed it in and out three times, checking with the switch each time.  Nothing.  Finally I thought to switch BULBS.  Sure enough, the brand new one had burned out instantly when I hit the switch the first time.
Next I went outside to replace these two bulbs with the LED kind.  No use running up a bigger bill, even if it IS cheaper here.  That's when I realized the bulbs I bought were of the indoor variety.  Well rats .. another trip to the store.
While I was up there on the ladder, the cable cord that was hanging down along a 20 foot distance needed to be tacked back up.  I had a box of clips ... it was just a matter of squishing in between the bushes with the ladder so I could reach.

Unfortunately for me, it takes a hammer to install the clips over the wires.   It was hard to hold the wire tight with clip attached while hammering UP with one hand.  The first one went in fine.  The second one went in with my thumb attached.  Gosh that hurt!!!  You can barely see the wire under the eave.  Not as tight as I would like, but it's MUCH better than it was.
The last project before the heat got me ... a new hummingbird feeder.  The last one just wouldn't stay full overnight.  This new variety was much larger and had a fully threaded neck, unlike the last one.  It also had an S-curved hook for hanging.

Once I got it home and went to fill it up, I couldn't find the top.  The girl at the store had taken it off to show me the hook ... didn't she put it back on?  Surely it's not a "senior moment" ... I don't remember taking the top off!!  

I checked the car ... the house ... the back porch ... everywhere I had been.  Nothing!!  Well rats ... I grabbed my purse to head back to the store and what should I find inside?  The top!!  Oh good grief.  Back to the kitchen to attach the hook and fill it up.  Clumsy me ... I dropped the hook and of course it went right down the garbage disposal.

Every stick your hand all the way inside one?  I'm always afraid it will magically start up.  I felt nothing ... but I KNOW it went down there!!  With flashlight in hand, I finally spotted it.  I gingerly reached inside to fetch it, and then .... over the counter this time ...  got it all put together.  The hummers are happy as can be.  Now at least THREE can eat at once.
By then I was nice and relaxed after the spider incident.  I was playing on the floor with Cooper when he rolled his ball under the chair.  I had to remove my kite bag in order to reach the ball.  That's when I found THIS!!!  I instantly jumped back six feet, feeling like my head was going to explode!!  I could feel my heart beating in my throat!!!

Up until now I had not found any scorpions INSIDE the house.  Why me Lord ... WHY ME????  Hoping he wouldn't scurry away while I found something to kill him with, I walked backwards to the closet.  I should have reached for the shovel ... but instead got the fly swatter.  

I know they are hard to kill ... I should have gone for something heavier.  I whacked him with all my might.  OMG!!!!  He fell to the carpeted floor and totally disappeared!!  He blended right in and I panicked!!  He's going to get away!!!!!!!!!!!  

I made a mad dash for the kitchen to get a flashlight and luckily ... thank you Lord ... found him dead on the floor.  I hit him six more times, just for good measure, then slid him on to the swatter and dumped him in the trash.  Take THAT!!!!  Only about an inch long here, by the time I squished him, he was about two inches .... a small one.  
All in all, a terrible morning.  I tried to sit and meditate the blood pressure away, but it wasn't happening.  I'm getting out the can of spray this morning and going all around the inside of the house.  It probably won't kill them, but maybe the smell will deter them a little.  

I whipped out a huge frozen container of bacon mac n cheese.  Maybe if I have a nice fat-filled comfort meal for lunch, I'll feel better!!  The day did get better, but I'll wait until tomorrow to relay those details.  In the meantime, I'm scanning the floor and furniture CONSTANTLY!!  





14 comments:


  1. Sure not fun running into those critters everywhere, you need to be on the constant lookout, good luck.

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    1. I've become an automatic scanner. Every time I move around, I scan the floor! LOL

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  2. Oh my God! Nancy, you have me freaking out! I freak each time i find a spider half that size and here you are battling those and scorpions in the same day! You might need to buy a hazmat (?) suit to wear on a daily basis. :O

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    1. Hey ... that's a good idea. Maybe just my cowboy boots would work ... good for stomping!

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  3. Apparently you can kill spiders by spraying them with Mouthwash, probably a Diabetic reaction to all the sugar you are left to clean up after. Scorpions are a different breed and the smaller they are the more Toxic.
    Be Safe and Enjoy!

    It's about time.

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    1. Mouthwash? Now that's one I haven't heard. It would make the house smell nice too!!

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  4. Scorpions are going to hide from you. Just remember to turn your shoes and boots upside down before you put them on.

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    1. I never really worried INSIDE the house, but I will now! Thank you for the reminder Jan!!

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  5. Look under you sinks and make sure that where all the pipes (in-take and out-take) are sealed to the wall. And perhaps a Terminix contract is in order.

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    1. I think that's where the spiders came from. One of those pipes wasn't sealed very well. As for Terminex ... I actually DO have a guy who sprays.

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  6. I would be selling that house. I could not live with all those creatures. I shudder just reading this.

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    1. I think it's just the summertime and all the rain. In the winter I never saw a single critter, mostly because I think they are hibernating. Hopefully winter will be better!!

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  7. Scorpions can enter your house thru drain pipes; especially true after a rainfall. I found one in my kitchen sink and one in the shower. I also found one in my sheets when i took them out of the dryer. Of course this was all before I got my new pest control company. Thankfully no spiders.

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    1. OMG ... in the sheets from your dryer????? I have a flap on the dryer hose that I sure hope is working!! These scorpions are so tiny though, they can probably slip through. I going to make another round with my handy dandy can of foam!

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