Task 5: Catch a spider in my hand

I have Peter to thank for this challenge. He decided it was high time I caught my own spiders, rather than calling for him and vanishing while he dealt with them. Catching them with a glass and a piece of paper wasn't enough - it had to be in my hands. Sheer sadism.

The only upside was that it meant I could ignore any cobwebs, as they were housing my potential targets. What I hadn't understood is that there is a spider season, and I'd have to wait until the autumn for them to appear. There were one or two earlier on, but Peter ruled them out as not being big enough. I found myself looking at spiders in a new light. Instead of shuddering, I was considering them as potential fulfillers of the last challenge in my Face the Fear section. My attitude was becoming almost maternal.

That all changed last night, when we were just about to go to bed and I spotted a huge spider above a bookcase in our living room:

(Apologies for the poor quality of the photos in this blog post. Things were moving fast.)

I hurriedly fetched a feather duster, to lure it down to floor level:

Instead of nestling in the feathers and allowing itself to be gently lowered, it fell to the carpet and sat there, lurking:

It was only when I crouched down, trying to catch it, when I realised just how much I really didn't want to do this:

It wasn't so much a question of whimpering, more of anguished squeaking, as it kept moving and I knew that at some point I was going to have to touch it:

Eventually I plucked up enough courage to catch it in my hands - horrible, really awful - and ran outside to release it:

It was such a relief to let it go, and to know I never had to do this again:

I stood up, brushed my trousers - and realised it was still in my hand. To my shame I screamed, which immediately set off Hesther next door, barking loudly. Muttering apologies to the corgi and neighbours, I tottered indoors, heart pounding. I hadn't expected to feel so scared, knowing it was irrational and I was considerably bigger than that poor arachnid, which I had just flung onto the patio. It looks as though Peter is still stuck with the job of spider removal.