Giant centipedes!

[ellienihon]

So, a little while back, I was woken by a weird sensation on my arm. I jumped up and screamed as the 8 inch centipede crawled across the floor. Having no experience with this type of creature, and NO desire to continue to share living space with it, I grabbed a tissue paper, and after several failed attempts, managed to pick it up and toss it in a trash can (which is still on my balcony). Extremely squicked and totally awake (seriously, remember those bugs in the Indiana Jones movie? imagine one of them waking you up.), I proceeded to school and shared my story with my co-workers.

After a few minutes, we determined that I had in fact been visited by a mukade, a type of Japanese centipede, which stings people. I was extremely lucky to not get stung. They are poisonous, and often come out during the rainy season (now). They are rarely alone, so I've had many people recommending various methods of dealing with them when (EEEK) I see them again.

Bugs squick me, and this bug scares me a lot. I have decided that I'm not opening the balcony door anymore, since I think it got in that way (if I'm not careful, the screen pulls the door all the way open). The construction work at the park behind the apartment has expanded to the empty lot next to my apartment, and the bulldozer has destroyed all the greenery that used to be there, so I'm hoping that the likelihood of a visitation is lessened. I really don't like bugs anywhere near me, and I miss the dry climate of San Diego.

This was my centipede adventure. For more information and pics of mukade-- http://homepage.mac.com/swhenneberry/OnMyMind/C40673818/E1060299329/

Comments

[silencebreaking.livejournal.com]

I would have screamed too. Those things look huge, and gross! Ick!!!

[ladykenyon.livejournal.com]

Ack!

Poor girl...

Geez... and I get deeply squicked by the ant infestations of SD.

But a rainy season, that I've got to envy you... Missing you immensely... Just to let you know.

[darkwombatdude.livejournal.com]

That looks nice. Ever since my summer job in the insect department of the Santa Barbara Natural History Museum, I've had a certain affinity for all things crawly. Yes, certain centipedes can be dangerous (though I don't think life threatening), I'm glad you weren't hurt, and hope the next one you see is safely under glass.

[darkwombatdude.livejournal.com]

Actually, I'm amazed you were able to catch it. Most centipedes, even the larger ones move blindingly fast when they need to. Good job!

Creepy EWWW

[zencowboysd.livejournal.com]

Now I know why katanas where invented! I would of chopped him up for offending me. Yikes!

[majinaraparticl.livejournal.com]

the poor animal :o(

Ohh reminds me of when I was....

[nerogoth.livejournal.com]

In the Air Force and got deployed for 2 months out in Thialand. I had this wonderful experiance of running into the swarming there of termites... the termites are as long as my index finger to the base of my palm and a wing span as wide as my palm.
We were wrapping up the exercise and starting to downsize the staffing, but as we didn't want things to just up and disappear we started round the clock guard shifts in specific spots. For example in my case I got to sit outside in a tent right next to the couple tone generator, which they were afraid would suddenly disappear if no one was nearby. For security reasons they wired up a spot light over my tent plus generator to ensure it was easily spotted by the random patrols of the security forces.
Well just days before we were told we couldn't being back the hundreds of wooden pallets we had brought in, which was a real pain in trying to repack material on a steel pallet verses small wooden ones all condensed onto the larger steel one. We were told that we goofed on bringing the pallets because termites would get in, and as they were yummy pine wood the termites were particularly happy to nest. Well I said so what, a few silly termites the size of ants wouldn't be a big deal, get some raid or just expose them to the chemicals/radiological/microwave equipment we use they be dead before we landed back in Guam, little did I know.

So there I was 10,000 miles from my wife of only 12 months, alone in a tent, in a foriegn country in the middle of the night. So I make a call back to the states thru our communication center, and I sit there trying to make myself feel better I hear the pat pat pat of what I think are raindrops outside which when the rain comes down is like a torrent of water (monsoon season). I pay it no mind and notice the tent becoming occupied with these large white bugs with wings (the termites). I start stepping on them and swatting a few, then they become a couple dozen, then soon I am trying to keep them from crawling in by the hundreds. All the while it sounds like a deep downpour outside. So I crack open the tent and to my astonishment there is thousands, no MILLIONS of these bugs swarming about this wonderful spot light and smacking into the tent light the heaviest downpour you ever known.

Needless to say since then I have a DEEP aversion to bugs being on my person. I have no issue with bugs in generals, nor seeing them or such, but if they are crawling over me, forget it I go nuts.


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