ONE MORE CREEPY-CRAWLY POST

I mentioned yesterday that we are having a few bug issues in our house. This, however, does not compare with the bug issue I am having at at work.

The issue is this: the spiders at work, well, they're big enough to throw the big ol' tennis shoe right back at me. Ick ick, gross gross.

One of my work tasks is to keep the animal areas clean and tidy, and this means also keeping the area free of bugs. Originally, the spiders used to catch more bugs than our bug traps, so I let the spiders stay under the same policy as applied at home. I figured that although I wasn't getting rid of all the bugs, on balance the spiders and I were eradicating more than I could alone. The trouble is that the spiders were a bit too successful, and their bounty of bugs allowed them to grow, and grow, and GROW.

These monster spiders seem to be particularly fond of the bathroom, as I found out in a rather alarming incident a few weeks ago. I was cleaning the bathroom and happened to lift the spare toilet roll which was sitting on the floor in the corner of the stall. From behind the toilet roll sprang a very perturbed, very big and very hairy spider, heading at Mach 2 towards my feet. I quickly placed the broom between myself and the spider, only to have him continue around the side of the broom and head determinedly towards my sandal-clad feet. Let's just say I quickly replaced the toilet roll and backed out of the room, holding the broom between myself and spider, until I was safely out the door.

Spiders: 1. Amanda: 0, possibly -1 if we deduct points for sheer cowardice.

I'm not totally sure what to do about them. They run too fast - and towards ME, that's the disturbing bit - to make capturing under a bowl a feasible option. The obvious solution, squashing them under a shoe that I'm wearing (I'm not totally sure at this point, but I don't THINK they're strong enough to throw the ol' tennis shoe AND me back) is not so palatable, however. It's the crunching sound I can't get past. I don't like things that crunch, unless they are breakfast cereal. And I refuse, simply refuse, to get one of "the guys" to take care of the problem, because I AM WOMAN, and I feel the need to be totally capable of all the tasks that befall me at work, no matter how wussy I am inside.

For now, the spiders stay and I've found a different bathroom to use. For the future...can the peanut gallery offer any useful solutions?