Banana Spiders and Downpours

Mike had a rather rude awakening the morning. I had been in the bathroom getting ready when out of the corner of my eye I saw a cockroach skitter from under the beds. I tried to get to it, but every time I moved toward it it ran back under the bed. I eventually lost it and gave up. I turned around to see a little spider on the wall next to me. I tried to smash it with my flip flop but it jumped away. Then I turn and in the corner of the wall and the ceiling I see it: the biggest spider I have ever seen that was not in captivity. I came to find out it is called a banana spider and it is apparently harmless. All I knew was that one of us needed to die and it wasn't me. So, I woke Mike up and informed him that he needed to get up and come kill the massive intruder. We got a chair to try to smack it but it had what appeared to be an egg sack and we were afraid that we would spray babies or eggs or something all over the place so I ran upstairs to quickly ask someone who lives here what it was and what was the best way to kill it. I was told that Raid would do the trick. So I came back with a can and Mike got in position. He started on the chair and immediately jumped off as the thing started to move down. After being sprayed, the spider jumped off the wall, onto the chair, went into the shower, and climbed up the wall. All the while, Mike is pursuing it with a constant shower of Raid (in between yelling and jumping back from it that is. Okay, Mike has corrected me. He was not yelling, I was yelling but he was jumping back quite a bit. Which he now informs me was to get in better position). Eventually, he sprayed it enough that it fell to the floor of the shower (which might have actually aided in expediting its death) and Mike washed it down he drain. And this was all before breakfast. Which was going to be pancakes but they were all gone by the time we got there. Fortunately, someone had given us a box of Pop Tarts yesterday so we ate those.

This afternoon we went out to deliver food just as the thunder was beginning. No sooner did we leave the gates when it began to rain. And the rain did not stop for the next few hours. We were soaked to the skin by the time we returned. I think Kerwin thought we were crazy. His friend, Justin, came along and he got to ride on his back for part of the trip.

Justin and the rest of this group leaves tomorrow at 4:30 am. We won't have to be alone for long, though. The next group comes in on Friday. There was a really cute couple from California that was in with this group and they got engaged today. It was really sweet. He is an artist and was painting a mural on the wall of the new Nutrition Center. The mural is finished and looks great. But we all just found out today that in the mural he has hidden the letters spelling "Will you marry me?" We were all very impressed. Well Mike has spotted the "cockroach that got away." I will go see if I can provide moral support.