Quite a few years ago (i.e., the other day ;) ), I was up late at night. I saw a spider high up on the wall in our hallway but didn't want to kill it. However, I thought I probably should because my little sister was sleeping in the room nearby, and I didn't want her to get bitten. My brothers were asleep and I thought, "I kill my own spiders. I don't need them to do it for me."
Thus, I came up with a bumper sticker idea.
I kill my own spiders.
That bumper stick has been affixed to all the cars I have driven/owned. When I run out of stickers, I simply go on-line and make a new one. I've gotten all sorts of responses.
One man in a business suit talked to me a gas station. He was very confused. He thought I raised spiders just to kill them. (Ummm, no, that's creepy; I don't do that.)
Another time two high school boys drove by in a truck. One leaned out the window with both thumbs in the air and yelled, "Yeah!! I kill my own spiders, too!"
On another occasion I walked out of the bank and towards my car. A lady in another car was very excitedly taking a picture with her cell phone. She said she thought it was great, and she was going to send the picture to her friend.
When I went to India last summer, we went on a church retreat in the jungle for a few days. I decided that I didn't want to sleep with my bed right up against the wall in our room, just in case some bug came along. There were some pretty gross spiders that stayed in the jungle, too. They weren't colorful or evil-looking, but they had fat, squishy bodies and could get pretty big. I pulled the curtains over the window and found a spider running along the fabric. I knocked him to the ground and killed him. I moved another curtain, but this time a spider ran down my arm, which I flailed violently. That spider died, too. I also found another spider living in a crack near the sink. I think managed to get him to come out, and he too gave up the ghost. I'm really glad none of the other girls found the spiders; they didn't have as much "spirit of adventure," as I like to call it.
Over the last few months, my students found out which car was mine and now periodically make comments to me in class.
"Oh, Ms. Byers, I kill my own spiders, too."
"That's great, David, thank you, be quiet now."
Today someone decided to tease another student.
"Oh, you have a huge spider on you!!"
"Just get Ms. Byers to get it off!!" :)
Ahh, spiders.
*Edit: Dave Tuck, my speech professor in college and one of Amos' friends, reminded me that I used my bumper sticker in a speech in class, too. I almost forgot about that. (I think that's the thing that sticks out to him most about me... ;) )
Thus, I came up with a bumper sticker idea.
I kill my own spiders.
That bumper stick has been affixed to all the cars I have driven/owned. When I run out of stickers, I simply go on-line and make a new one. I've gotten all sorts of responses.
One man in a business suit talked to me a gas station. He was very confused. He thought I raised spiders just to kill them. (Ummm, no, that's creepy; I don't do that.)
Another time two high school boys drove by in a truck. One leaned out the window with both thumbs in the air and yelled, "Yeah!! I kill my own spiders, too!"
On another occasion I walked out of the bank and towards my car. A lady in another car was very excitedly taking a picture with her cell phone. She said she thought it was great, and she was going to send the picture to her friend.
When I went to India last summer, we went on a church retreat in the jungle for a few days. I decided that I didn't want to sleep with my bed right up against the wall in our room, just in case some bug came along. There were some pretty gross spiders that stayed in the jungle, too. They weren't colorful or evil-looking, but they had fat, squishy bodies and could get pretty big. I pulled the curtains over the window and found a spider running along the fabric. I knocked him to the ground and killed him. I moved another curtain, but this time a spider ran down my arm, which I flailed violently. That spider died, too. I also found another spider living in a crack near the sink. I think managed to get him to come out, and he too gave up the ghost. I'm really glad none of the other girls found the spiders; they didn't have as much "spirit of adventure," as I like to call it.
Over the last few months, my students found out which car was mine and now periodically make comments to me in class.
"Oh, Ms. Byers, I kill my own spiders, too."
"That's great, David, thank you, be quiet now."
Today someone decided to tease another student.
"Oh, you have a huge spider on you!!"
"Just get Ms. Byers to get it off!!" :)
Ahh, spiders.
*Edit: Dave Tuck, my speech professor in college and one of Amos' friends, reminded me that I used my bumper sticker in a speech in class, too. I almost forgot about that. (I think that's the thing that sticks out to him most about me... ;) )
