Window Spider Buddy
Denise was out of town for the first half of the week, so I was looking for ways to entertain myself. Monday night, I was outside, and noticed that one of the windows of my home office/studio is home to a particularly large spider. I knew it lived there, I just didn't realize how big it had gotten. There was a crane fly (which is the real name of those "Bugs who go into your house to die", Sid...I found that out just for you) trapped between the window panes. He wasn't getting caught in the web, but he would bump into it every so often while trying to find a way out or in, and it would send this spider into a momentary frenzy which was pretty amusing to behold.
After a few minutes of this, I decided to get all nature photographer and try and get a good picture of my newfound spider buddy, since, hell, the thing is way too big now to get out of the window, so I really don't mind it. It's like having a little two-dimensional terrarium comprised of exactly one spider and his past and future meals.
Unfortunately, it was quite dark outside, so I had to turn off all the lights inside, raise the window blinds (another reason I really don't mind this guy: I never really have to see him unless I want to), and try to spotlight him with my Mini-Maglite. I felt like some sort of digital photography mercenary, holding a camera in one hand and a flashlight in the other, in exactly the way that Doom 3 doesn't let you. Of course, I probably looked like a total ass to my neighbors, but that's cool.
As it turns out, my hands are not really steady enough to take a non-blurry picture with a slow shutter speed in relative darkness, so I eventually broke out the tripod, and set it up in front of the window like a man prepared to do some serious surveillance work. You know, like a stalker or something. This worked out a little better for picture clarity, but spiders apparently dislike having a flashlight shined in their eyes, perhaps because of the multitude thereof. He (or she, but I choose to think it's a he, 'cause there may otherwise be babies in there one day) would tolerate it for about 0.2 seconds, before skittering elsewhere in his web, away from the horrible burning electronic torch. Every time he did this, I would have to adjust the tripod, so it became less like "interesting" and more like "trouble" pretty soon. I did eventually get a few, though. Click on either for a slightly larger version.
...and from a bit farther back, so you can see the scale by the window frame...
All of which goes to prove that it's possible to say far too much about far too little.
In the middle of all of this (the picture taking, not the writing), Sid called, I think to make fun of me and compel me to have a drink, before hanging up on me.
Currently listening to: Mike and Steph talking about camping
After a few minutes of this, I decided to get all nature photographer and try and get a good picture of my newfound spider buddy, since, hell, the thing is way too big now to get out of the window, so I really don't mind it. It's like having a little two-dimensional terrarium comprised of exactly one spider and his past and future meals.
Unfortunately, it was quite dark outside, so I had to turn off all the lights inside, raise the window blinds (another reason I really don't mind this guy: I never really have to see him unless I want to), and try to spotlight him with my Mini-Maglite. I felt like some sort of digital photography mercenary, holding a camera in one hand and a flashlight in the other, in exactly the way that Doom 3 doesn't let you. Of course, I probably looked like a total ass to my neighbors, but that's cool.
As it turns out, my hands are not really steady enough to take a non-blurry picture with a slow shutter speed in relative darkness, so I eventually broke out the tripod, and set it up in front of the window like a man prepared to do some serious surveillance work. You know, like a stalker or something. This worked out a little better for picture clarity, but spiders apparently dislike having a flashlight shined in their eyes, perhaps because of the multitude thereof. He (or she, but I choose to think it's a he, 'cause there may otherwise be babies in there one day) would tolerate it for about 0.2 seconds, before skittering elsewhere in his web, away from the horrible burning electronic torch. Every time he did this, I would have to adjust the tripod, so it became less like "interesting" and more like "trouble" pretty soon. I did eventually get a few, though. Click on either for a slightly larger version.
...and from a bit farther back, so you can see the scale by the window frame...
All of which goes to prove that it's possible to say far too much about far too little.
In the middle of all of this (the picture taking, not the writing), Sid called, I think to make fun of me and compel me to have a drink, before hanging up on me.
Currently listening to: Mike and Steph talking about camping
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