Friday, March 6, 2009

Fright of my life today!

I thought this was a bit of fuzz on the carpet in my den. I bent down and picked it up!! FORTUNATELY (!!!!!!!) this thing was already dead and flattened out, but you can just imagine the terror I felt when I discovered what it actually was!!!! OMG!!!I must have stepped on him outdoors somewhere and he became stuck to the bottom of my shoe. This scares the daylights out of me!!! I do not want these things in my house. I have my yard sprayed each month to keep the scorpion's food sources (crickets, bugs, whatever) away from my house! Spraying won't kill the darned things but destroying its food here will mean it has to move next door to hunt food!! He is in a plastic bag now and I will soon destroy him for good!!

FROM NOW ON I AM PUTTING ON MY GLASSES BEFORE I PICK ANYTHING UP OFF THE FLOOR!!! LESSON LEARNED!!!

7 comments:

Chia said...

EEEeeewwwwww! So glad he was dead first and you didn't poke yourself on his tail. I think if I were you I'd be leaving my glasses son 24/7 for the next few weeks! LOL

Sherry Goodloe said...

This is one of the reasons that we don't wear shoes inside our home! And as far as people looking at me funny when they are at my front door? . . . well, after reading your post, I won't ever feel uncomfortable about asking them to remove their shoes ever again! LOL - but not really laughing.

Have a bug-free weekend ahead! xoxo

CeCe said...

I ALWAYS wear shoes in the house when I am in the valley. The reason-----Scorpions. I have been bitten twice--once on the finger tip because the one I picked up was not dead. Once on my heel.Oh My. I sleep with my bedroom slippers on the end table. When I awake to go to the restroom I automatically put on my slippers. I can not begin to tell you the number of these critters we have killed over the years. I have just gotten used to them as the desert roach but I want to avoid ever being bitten again. Thank goodness yours was dead!

Judy Wood said...

This hit the news today, looked alot like YOUR scorpion! Read on...



Bust out the bug spray and double-check those empty shoes -- a warm March has led to an increase in scorpion stings in Arizona.

March is typically too early for the Arizona Poison and Drug Information Center to get calls of scorpion stings and spider bites. But this year, average daily temperatures have been about 10 degrees warmer than the same month last year, leading to a 30 percent increase in the daily rate of scorpion stings, center Director Judy McNally said.

Calls to the center include bites from snakes, spiders, and centipedes, and stings from bees and scorpions. Out of those, McNally said scorpion stings are most common, with thousands of calls every year.

She said the center is now receiving about six calls a day reporting stings, double the number of calls per day in February. By June, the rate likely will double again.

Of the 30 species of scorpions in Arizona, only the bark scorpion is considered life-threatening.

The bark scorpion's sting is more toxic than that of most other species. And as bugs start sneaking into homes as the weather warms, the inch-and-a-half-long scorpions follow, hunting food.

Children under the age of 5 are at an especially high risk, McNally said, adding that symptoms can include thrashing, muscle rigidity, cramping, roving eye movements, spasms, breathing difficulties, and loss of bowel and bladder control.

But most patients have minor symptoms, such as numbness or tingling at the sting site.

Judy said...

Thanks, Judy! Good read! I am more careful now to check where I step outdoors. Don't know where I picked up that critter, but just VERY GLAD he was dead!!

Judy Wood said...

i can't believe YOUR blog and THEIR article came out on the same day?!? i thought maybe YOU'd be featured in the article... lol...

Lindsey said...

Oh my.... I am so glad you didn't get stung. Scorpions have always been a phobia of mine. Glad you are safe!