| | I arrived home from shopping this afternoon, just as my roommate Kim was about to go out. "Don't open the kitchen window!" she warned as if it was a matter of life or death. "Why?" I asked. "Read the note," Kim replied. I proceeded to read the post-it note which she had stuck on the kitchen window. It read: 'Don't open the window...scary bug might attack you.' I quickly saw the problem. There was a skinny roach-type of bug clinging to one of the inside window panes. It would soon find itself into the kitchen if I didn't do something about it. "Can you catch it?" Kim asked as she prepared to leave. "I guess I have no choice," I replied.
Kim took off, and I was left alone with the scary bug. The bug had now backtracked and was on the window screen. Good, I thought, I should be able to shoo it out. But, as I attempted to remove the screen, the bug fell and landed in the groove where the screen should sit. The bug was stuck and I couldn't shift it. Plus, if I put the screen back, it might squish or decapitate the poor helpless bug. Now what? I mulled it over for awhile and eventually decided that, since the bug hadn't made any effort to attack me yet, it wasn't all that scary and it could stay where it was. I gingerly placed the screen back in such a way that it wouldn't squish the bug. I hoped that maybe the bug would find its way outside without my help.
Kim returned home a few hours later and, by this time, I'd pretty much forgotten about the bug. Not Kim. "Did you catch the scary bug?" she asked hopefully. "Nope," I replied. Kim and I walked into the kitchen and glanced at the window. The bug had climbed up on to the screen again. "Kill it...or catch it with your bug catcher," Kim ordered. By the tone of her voice, I could tell that Kim meant business. I had to act fast, otherwise the scary bug would pounce on Kim. And so I got my official bug catcher (a see-through plastic container with the words Bug Catcher written in black magic marker on the lid) and proceeded to slide the bug into the container. I quickly slammed the lid on the container, so that the bug wouldn't have a chance to jump out and attack us. Since this particular bug moved slow as molasses, I could have taken my sweet time. But it was important to show Kim that I was taking my bug catching job seriously. I showed Kim the bug imprisoned in its temporary home, and then I prepared to leave the apartment. "You're not putting it in the stairwell, are you?" Kim asked apprehensively. "Don't worry... I'll take it outside," I replied. And off I went, into the stairwell, down two flights of stairs, until I was outside. I released the frightened and not-so-scary bug into the great outdoors, and went back inside the building, slamming the door behind me to ensure that the scary bug had no opportunity to follow me back inside. I returned to my apartment and to a very relieved roommate.
By the way, it was only yesterday when a similar event occured. But, on that occasion, it was a different scary bug that flew across the living room, barely missing Kim's head, landing on a wall near the ceiling. It was a big ugly gray moth. And again I was ordered by Kim to catch the scary bug. She took off and left me alone with the moth. Again, I had to use my official bug catcher, as well as a mop, to reach and capture the moth. I released the moth, unharmed, into the great outdoors.
I've decided, after these two events, that I've definitely earned the title of Official Bug Catcher of the Household. And I find it somewhat amusing that these one-inch bugs terrorize my almost 6-foot roommate. And that Kim relies on me, her 5-foot 95 pound roommate, to save her from these scary bugs.
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| | Posted 8/12/2007 8:22 PM - 305 Views - 2 eProps - 1 Comment
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