Legs and Hair

That seems to be the order of the day with the creepy crawlies we've been finding ourselves cohabitating with since moving into this house. I've documented the giant spiders that we share a yard with, but they are looking more and more tame compared to some of the things I've seen crawling around in our kitchen lately. Tonight I killed my second 'kemushi' this week. They are hideously hairy centipede-like beasts that scurry around and put a nasty bite on you if they feel the need. I have a feeling that at some point I will be the victim of one of these things, hopefully in my sleep so I don't have to experience it while fully conscious.

We've only come across one cockroach so far, and what they lack in hair, they make up for in schizophrenic freak outs upon being hit with a blast of cockroach spray. They'll generally start flying around, spinning in circles on the floor, or scampering drunkenly in several directions at once. It seems that the spray never really kills them either, as you can see them slowly twitching their legs and gradually gaining their strength back as the chemicals wear off. Basically it immobilizes them long enough to get them into the toilet and flush them away. And even then I'm not sure they even die, just get washed into the gutter where they live to scavange another day with a chip on their shoulder.

The other night when we were BBQ-ing an alien sort of insect landed on me. It flew onto my leg and I thought it was was a grasshopper. But it quickly escaped onto the ground where it writhed around in a motion that was a between a snake and a centipede. It's face was more akin to a lizard though. I have no idea what the hell it was and the part of me that isn't utterly disgusted by these creatures wants to see another one just to get a better idea of what planet it may have come from.

So I'm sitting here getting ready for bed and I'm just a little bit jumpy. I find myself instinctively looking around the room at the walls and ceiling, or flinching whenever something brushes against me. It's starting to cool off these days, and it's pouring rain right now, so I suppose it's inevitable that more of these critters will manage to find their way inside. Joy. Falling asleep should be all kinds of fun tonight.