I hate spiders. They really creep me out. Probably because there are so many different kinds and too many things for me to know about them-- like snakes and birds. Ants--- ants are easy. They may come in different shapes, sizes and colors but for the most part, I can deal with ants. A little boric acid here, a little RAID there, a good stomp... But... spiders hide in dark places. They crawl under things, across things, over things. Some are poisonous. Some can jump. That said-- tonight, I promised myself an early night. My internal clock is all messed up and I've been sleepy when I should be awake and awake when I should be asleep. My normal benadryl-zoloft-nyquil nightcap isn't working anymore. I was all settled in my bed by 9 pm. Lights out. Shades drawn. Pillows and sheets cat-hair free. Air Conditioner set at a comfortable level. Face washed. Teeth brushed. Then, I got thirsty. Not bathroom tap water thirsty. Diet A&W Rootbeer thirsty. So, I got up and headed towards the stairs and as soon as I turned on the hallway light, there is was. A spider. A black hairy one with white stripes on its back. It was halfway down the stairwell on the wall. Too high for me to reach. I stood on the top step and cursed the powers that be which have prevented me from having a spider-catching man in my life. (Yeah, that's very 50s Ozzie and Harriet but there are just some things I need a man for. Killing bugs is one of them.) I tried to gauge which way the bugger was going to go. Was he coming towards me or moving away from me? I couldn't tell. If I started down the stairs, would he suddenly hurl himself from the wall onto my head and cause me to tumble to my death? Would he bite me and cause me to swell up like a balloon? Oh-- the dilemma. I opened the linen closet and grabbed the first aerosol bottle I could find. A lovely mint scented home-made linen spray that I made last year to keep Molly off of my bed. Turns out that she liked it and the scent made me hungry for those gummy spearmint leave candies so I stopped using it. I adjusted the nozzle to "stream" and aimed it at the spider. The first shot missed him. So, I squirted again and hit him. He scurried down the wall away from me. I moved down a couple of steps and squirted again. I hit him dead on and he fell onto this decorative hat I made a few years ago. It's covered with silk flowers and hangs on the wall. I couldn't see the spider so I doused the silk flowers with the spray then darted the rest of the way down the stairs. I went to the kitchen and had my guzzle of rootbeer. Nice ice cold rootbeer. Yum. Then, as I headed towards the stairs, I noticed Molly staring up at something and growling. There was Mr. Spider. He was about eye level. I took off my slipper and smashed him against the wall. He crunched. I flinched. Now, I can't sleep. I keep waiting for more spiders to show up. I keep wondering where he came from and where he was going. I looked him up on the 'net to see what kind of spider he is but couldn't find any that looked exactly like him. UGH! Well... on the bright side, my apartment smells minty fresh. :)