ew. in my backyard.

I hate when things shake my sense of security. I'm admittedly pretty paranoid, but there are a lot of things I don't worry about. Too much.

Dying via spider bite is usually not one of them. (This is your time to stop reading/looking if you really hate spiders. I don't want to give anyone nightmares or a panic attack!)

Now, don't let that make you think I'm not freaked out by spiders. I totally am. But I normally just want them to not crawl on me or my stuff.

This was not the case yesterday, when I found this little lady in my backyard.



Yeah, that red hourglass on her abdomen tells you she means business.

Her 6" (at least) web was underneath a downspout right off our patio. Less than six feet away from our back door. Less than six feet from where my dogs sleep. Right next to/under where we often store gloves and tools.

(The photo has notes if you really want to see where everything is!)

Finding a black widow in my compost bin was one thing. There are all kinds of yummy little bug buddies in there to eat. But this just freaks me out.

And I've now given myself the creepie-crawlies! Fuck spiders!

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As a kid, one of my favorite treats that my mom made was Amish Friendship Bread. The nurses at the hospital passed it around, and we had some going pretty routinely.

In case you're not familiar, Amish Friendship Bread has it's own wikipedia page. There are tons of (identical) recipes for it online, as well as how to start your own starter, and some variations.

My favorite variation has always been substitution vanilla pudding with chocolate. You can also use pistachio, or really any other pudding flavor. When I got a bag of starter from theboy's dad's girlfriend I was excited. I wanted to start baking as soon as I could, but the recipe takes 10 days, which puts a damper on things.








Of course I used the chocolate variation.

This batch didn't turn out as moist as I would like it to be, but that has not deterred me from eating it!

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fishies!

I love fish. If I had the time and commitment (and money!) I would have a gigantic fish tank. Or quite a few smaller ones. My dream is to be able to hire someone solely to take care of my amazing fishtanks. It's really a lot of work, especially with the more interesting stuff.

I especially love bettas. They have such personality! They're interested in everything they see. My boyfriend's dad and his girlfriend recently acquired a black fancy goldfish, and they are another of my favorite fish. I decided last week that I needed new fish, and had a really hard time deciding between a couple of fancy goldfish or a betta. I ended up opting for a betta.



He was the sickliest one of the bunch the little pet store near my house. But I liked his colors the most. And I knew that with proper feeding and water changes he would be fine. You should see the difference in his colors in just a little over a week! He is so much darker. I think that darker gravel would help, too. He doesn't have a name yet. I've been considering a few different things.

He reminds me of two of the bettas I had last year at about this time.


                                
        

This new fish is full of personality. He is really inquisitive, and I swear that he was watching the television while I had him in front of it during his tank cleaning!

After looking at pictures on flickr, I really want a black betta. I don't think I've ever seen one IRL. I definitely see how people get addicted to betta keeping. They don't require much of anything, and their upkeep/maintenance is minimal, especially compared with other fish. I want about twelve more, in various colors.