Comic Info:
July 4, 2011 - 12:43am
I don't generally have a problem with spiders, this one was *just* big enough and weird-enough looking to make you go "hey, there are no venomous spiders in Canada, right guys? ... right?" Also I've heard one too many stories about brown recluses recently. The spider sure was brown and... recluse-lookin'.
After I went home and did some internetting I determined that a) there aren't any brown-recluses in Vancouver, b) it was probably a hobo spider. Which really isn't fair, because that is an *adorable* name for a spider whose bites are considered to be one of the most "medically significant" :/
Anyway, contrary to what the strip would suggest I was content to attentively watch this big-little guy skitter around beside me. That is, until the dude behind me decided to catch it on his bus-transfer. And then he got spooked, so he THREW IT AT ME.
WHAT. WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT!? WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU
Comic Comments
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Comments
I've had experiences liek this before. Luckily I wasn't in a confined space like a bus. I hate being the only arachnophibic person in a room. Everybody looks at you like you're insane when you freak out over the huge spider in the room.
I love how everyone is like "what is wrong with the crazy lady?" and not "what is that unnatural 8-legged insult against man and God!?". I've never seen a spider on a bus! Just crack addicts who talk about cheese who may or may not be undercover cops.
I woulda punched that guy if he threw a spider at me. Right in the face.
Amen.... ;____;
Amen.... ;____;
Brown Recluse are actually really SMALL spiders, We were CONSTANTLY warned about them on scouting trips here in Minnesota. Here's a picture for scale.
(WARNING, PICTURE MAY SQUIK YOU OUT, it is a spider after all)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Brown-recluse-c...
Was the part about the polite Australian man real?
Brown Recluse are actually really SMALL spiders, We were CONSTANTLY warned about them on scouting trips here in Minnesota. Here's a picture for scale.
(WARNING, PICTURE MAY SQUIK YOU OUT, it is a spider after all)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Brown-recluse-c...
Was the part about the polite Australian man real?
Oh good, so when I go back east I'll make sure to be worried about them constantly.
Yes the Australian man was real! Though not unusual, I see far more Australians than spiders on a regular basis
Aaaah spiders, I hate spiders, but the real question here is "how do zombies tap dance?".
Australia is a pretty poisonus place.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wy_TB6onHVE
my favorite video by australian comedians
As an Australian I can say that we don't see any spiders as being dangerous enough to kill anyone. Not even Australian spiders get that honour. Of course for any venomous or poisonous creature to be called deadly in Australia it needs to be able to kill you within minutes, which is why no North American snakes or spiders are deadly.
As an Australian, i suggest you go get bitten by a Funnel web
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sydney_funnel-web_spider) there are cases of people (children, admittedly) dying within 15minutes. can you reach a hospital in 15 minutes? (i dont think i can) for bonus points, they are some of the most aggressive spiders, and attack unprovoked. more bonus points for living in the largest city, sydney. extra special bonus points because their venom ONLY AFFECTS PRIMATES, OF WHICH THERE ARE NO NATIVE PRIMATES IN AUSTRALIA.
that said, there are the the snakes (plural. there are at least 30 venoumous species, and at least 7 of the top 10 most venomous) are worse . the octopi (thought 15 minues was short? these can do it in THREE). harpoon launching shellfish (projectile weapons! i kid you not).
hah, i WISH i were making some of that up, those probably the most dangerous animals..... well, the most poisonous..... well, some of the poisonous.
(im kidding, there are plenty more, like swarms of poisonous jellyfish and stonefish
I don't really understand why, but whenever I read that last panel about the tap-dancing zombies... well I suppose it's a little bit of a brain twister because my brain conveniently rearranges it into 'tap-zamping dombies'... !
I approve of this modification, although the best may be zap-damping tombies!
I only hate spiders when they get too close to me.
I didn't hear about hobo spiders until I got to college, but the good news about them is that they can't walk up smooth surfaces like sinks, which is unusual for spiders. So if I move back to Montana I'll just coat the bottom of my house with something hobo spider-proof and make sure there are no other ways they could possibly get past that stuff.
...Or I'll just forget about it until I see one and then be paranoid for a long time about spiders invading my house. That's usually what happens anyway...
heh. I'm a firm believer in "it won't hurt you if you don't agitate it" with bugs. One time I was playing plants vs zombies on my old computer and I noticed something out of the corner of my eye.
Turns out, a spider had lowered itself from the cieling on to my head, and was hanging off a bit fo my bangs. I didn't freak then, so I'd probably be cool with this. XD
I've seen many brown recluses AND black widows here in the south. The boy scout camp I used to go to was out in the backwoods and so would be infested with both species. You had to be careful when going to the bathroom that black widows had not established a nest in the latrine set up for you or you'd have a very angry and deadly spider within easy reach of your dangly bits.
D:
I don't blame the guy from Australia for being a bit worried.
Everything in Australia is out to kill you.
Australia is Mother Nature's way of saying "Hey humanity? Screw you."
http://www.cracked.com/funny-163-australia/
I'm not too freaked out by spiders. I'm the spider relocator in my house. My husband is terrified of them but that's only because he's had spider bites turn into staph infections. There are also wolf spiders and hay spiders here in washington who are ridonkulously huge.
http://localpestcontrolservices.com/pest_control_blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/wolf-spider-with-egg-sac1-300x289.jpg
http://www.fotothing.com/photos/2cd/2cd6c5bf13da4fe2fe0e99adf98f6cef.jpg
The second spider would probably cause me to pass out. After peeing myself of course.... ;____;
I live in Maine, where there are no dangerously venomous spiders. Or snakes. It's a nice place to live.
And you didn't mention that by “medically significant”, you meant their bite might cause a long lasting, decomposing wound around the area.
Interestingly enough, the hospital not too far from where I live has actually become somewhat of a pioneer in the treatment of brown recluse spider bites. Of course, I guess that says something for the prevalence of brown recluse spiders in the area around where I live. :(
Well, I live in Florida now (I used to be in Quebec ;___;) and spiders here = 4 times bigger and possibly 4 times deadlier. We have brown recluses here but anywho going to my story.
My boyfriend once took a picture of a spider who's body was probably 2 1/2 in long and had the scariest, pointiest black legs ever and its head and eyes were so significantly large that, by standing 6 feet away, he took a picture with his Blackberry and you cool see the reflection of the flash in its eyes O___O
Talk about scary spiders.... he lives on a ranch so there are A LOT of big and scary and deadly spiders.
I hate Florida
link to scary spider: http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/60282_1620586956264_12841...
Other scary spider in my yard: http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/39245_1568102044174_12841...
;___; did I mention I have arachniphobia?
Oh and what is the name of the phobia of starfish...I also have that too.
Reminds me of one time when I almost walked into a web spun by what I was told was a "banana spider."
My response was that it didn't look like a banana. It looked like three inches (feet?) of spidery death with colors and legs and ugh.
Yah the boyfriend also took the pic of the banana spider...and they are probably the scariest things around. He also went around the pool enclosure and found its web. Funnely shaped I'm guessing O__o
Scary web with victim: http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/41362_1568103004198_12841...
;___; I hate spiders
Sorry...its a black and yellow argiope spider and non venomous (still really scary)
Holy moses that thing is terrifying x_x
I had an experience of running into a nice and medium sized spider in my bathroom, resulting in my almost immediate retreat. When I ask my roommates to help get rid of it for me, I discovered that both of them were scared of spiders too...:(
Needless to say, the next few days left us on the edge when the spider disappeared, and then showed up in the other bathroom, on one of my roommate's towel... Ever since the experience, we keep a bottle of Raid well within reach, for when any of us have panic attacks upon seeing spiders.
that's no good, kitty. There has to be at least one non arachniphobe per household. or at least one that's not afraid to swat it with a broom with their eyes closed lol.