Close Encounters

So this morning I went in to make the bed after I got out of the shower and what should I see on the wall but a ginormous thousand-legger. I HATE those things! I’ve read that they’re harmless (icky but harmless) and that they are supposed to eat spiders (and just where, pray tell, was this one yesterday morning when there was a spider in the bathroom?) but they still creep me out. I went ahead and made the bed because I didn’t want to go after him and have him take a flying leap off the wall into the sheets (yes, in my mind they have super powers), all the while plotting the steps I was going to take to bring about his demise. Once I got the spread on the bed, I went back to the bathroom to get a paper towel. This small task took me all of 10, maybe 15, seconds tops, and when I got back to the bedroom….no creepy-crawly critter in sight. I had noticed that he had seemed to be having trouble keeping all trigajillion of his legs on the wall, so I thought maybe he had fallen. I looked around on the floor - although if he were there he probably would have gotten mired in all the dust and I'd have had him - and behind the books and magazines I have next to the bed and he had just vanished – poof! I wasted 5 minutes looking for him and finally gave up because I really didn't fancy being late for work and trying to explain that it was because I'd been looking for a varmint. I assume he must have made it to his bolt-hole, wherever that is; I hope it's far away and he stays there! I should have squashed first and then got the paper towel.

On a happier note, I saw a mama deer with her fawn (with spots!) as I drove up the hill to work this morning. They were just the other side of the guard rail. I slowed down to take a better look and of course Mama Deer decided it was time to bail and headed back into the brush. The fawn hesitated, but then he followed her. If I'd listened closely, I probably could have heard the deer equivalent of "Junior, come here this instant!" Pretty cool.

Summer reading is moving right along. I've finished two of the books I had in my "summer reading" pile, given up on two and am still working on another. I made a trip to the library last week ::sigh:: and got some more, not to mention the ones that I bought at the brand-spankin' new local Barnes & Noble a couple of weeks ago ::sigh again:: Anyway, right now I'm reading a book called "Death is a Cabaret", by Deborah Morgan, a new author to me. The main character is an antiques "picker", which is a person who goes to flea markets and yard sales and hunts for antiques amongst all the junque. It's pretty good; I'm traveling this weekend, so I'll probably finish it.

Finally, here's a progress report on Anna Thiess:

I think she's coming along nicely. The top part is a little tedious with the alphabet -- not a fan of stitching alphabets -- and the dividing bands, but it's moving quickly and once I finish the top, the motifs on the bottom will be more fun.

Everyone have a good weekend and happy stitching!