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16639. arkymalarky - 9/19/2005 6:24:51 PM Yes, the copperhead snake is a very common poisonous snake in AR. Bob's seen lots of them this year in particular. 16640. arkymalarky - 9/19/2005 6:31:42 PM I've been sort of irritated at our attempts to make it known that our upstairs (two bedrooms, a full bath, a walk-in closet, and a balcony) is available for any evacuees who need it. The Red Cross emptied out the nearest shelter and they didn't show any interest in helping people find local temporary housing. I went there in person and all they wanted was money--no supplies and no volunteers, which we can't do anyway, because of our work schedules and where we live.
We're inconveniently located, I know, but it seems the places I call aren't interested in facilitating location of evacuees. The churches are working on their own, but these rural churches don't have many people needing housing. Most have found something already, but some people could still have a more comfortable place to stay than a shelter and cheaper than a hotel if groups were more coordinated and equipped to match people up. I'm hesitant to go with a national non-profit that's not well known, but it seems between the Red Cross, FEMA (who didn't even answer the # provided on the ONE small sign which I had to stop in the middle of the street to even read--it was the # to City Hall, who gave me yet another number that didn't go anywhere, either), etc, they'd be able to facilitate something like that on the local level in the communities where they're already working and running shelters. 16641. arkymalarky - 9/19/2005 6:32:48 PM As far as what kind of spider might have bitten me, it wasn't the worst--a brown recluse or a black widow--but probably some generic something that I reacted to. 16642. Jenerator - 9/19/2005 6:38:23 PM A black widow bit me when I was 13 - I morphed into the Elephant man and have viral hives as a result.
Thank God we caught it in time to drown my system in antibiotics and antivenoms, but I am still vulnerable to colds and the like. Oh, and the swelling went down after three months.
No doubt, the worst experience of my life. 16643. thoughtful - 9/19/2005 6:39:25 PM Copperhead snake:
%20301.jpg) 16644. thoughtful - 9/19/2005 6:40:52 PM brown recluse spider
 16645. thoughtful - 9/19/2005 6:41:42 PM brown recluse spider bite:
 16646. thoughtful - 9/19/2005 6:42:54 PM black widow spider:
 16647. thoughtful - 9/19/2005 6:44:27 PM black widow spider bite
 16648. arkymalarky - 9/19/2005 6:45:49 PM You are lucky, Jen. They say those are horrendous, but thankfully rare because they are so shy. We were always warned about them when we were kids.
I did loan my brother my car one time, though, and there was a black widow on the visor. He and his friend pulled over on the highway and threw pebbles at it until it dropped and they could knock it out of the car. 16649. arkymalarky - 9/19/2005 6:47:26 PM Creepy pictures! (the ones that loaded, that is--still can't see the brown recluse spider or bite) 16650. Ms. No - 9/19/2005 6:48:10 PM We've had a bunch of Black Widows around my place. I always wear heavy gloves when I take out the garbage because they like to hide there. I've killed three or four pretty large ones since I moved in last year and found another one just yesterday back in the can. I'm going to have to hose them all down again, there must be eggs or something that I've missed. I've never lived anywhere that I've encountered so many of them. 16651. arkymalarky - 9/19/2005 7:00:19 PM That's scary. We have them under the water meter, but since we're not on city water any more, we never open it up.
16652. Ms. No - 9/19/2005 7:04:05 PM I don't worry so much for myself because I know to be careful of them and I'm not out there much, but there are a lot of kids in the building next door and they walk by there all the time and play outside. I've told their folks about the spiders and the kids too so I just hope they're careful. A Black Widow's bite isn't life-threatening for a full-grown adult unless you've got a special sensitivity to them, but kids can become really sick --- as Jen's experience attests. 16653. arkymalarky - 9/19/2005 7:36:40 PM If anyone knows anything about the Treo phone I linked, I'd love to hear it before I take the plunge in a couple of weeks. 16654. judithathome - 9/19/2005 8:11:33 PM We went to the play Saturday night with 5 other people and on to dinner afterward. Then, we went on down to the jazz festival (outdoors) and it was hotter than hell...I had on a skirt and a boatneck white cotton sweater which evidently was a horrid idea.
I got so hot and started feeling like I was going to faint...my muscles started aching and everyone was shocked at how red my face was...my hair was sopping wet. I never sweat but my hair became drenched and Keoni went to get the car, wouldn't even let me walk to it.. and we came home.
I was sick all night and into yesterday. I talked to a friend who went down there later and she said people weredropping like flies. Glad I escaped! 16655. thoughtful - 9/19/2005 8:32:51 PM oh dear...that's awful. hope you drank lots of water. 16656. judithathome - 9/19/2005 8:40:43 PM I did...that's why it was so surprising. They were selling water for $2 a bottle and we blew $6 on it and still I got sick. It was brutal. 16657. arkymalarky - 9/19/2005 9:53:00 PM My lands, Judith, that's awful. 16658. Jenerator - 9/19/2005 11:01:21 PM Yep, that bite along with the red, swollen skin looks just like what I had on the back of my neck!
It worked its way down through my entire body in zones. At the end of it all, my feet were swollen and red.
That's why I absolutely hate spiders. I kill them all if I see them - even the tiny ones, because, well, you just never know.
Even garden spiders freak me out. I know they're supposed to be good for the environment, but I kill them, too.
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