On Bugs

Oh god! It can fly? That’s not fair!
-Louis

He uttered those words in reference to the giant, fearsome beetle-thing that was blocking entrance to my apartment. Or rather, he uttered them after I poked at it with his sword and it started to fly.

Intellectually, I’m not terribly afraid of bugs: they tend to be an annoyance rather than a source of fear. The few insects that bite, sting, or are venomous generally leave me alone and I leave them alone. I don’t have any known allergies to insects, so I have no compelling medical reason to be worried about bugs.

But there’s something about finger-length beetles that give me the heebie-jeebies. Upon seeing this insect, the  words of Admiral Ackbar sprang to mind: “[We] can’t repel firepower of that magnitude!” I’m not exactly cowardly, but this bug still creeped me the hell out. It reminded me of the hockey-puck sized ones I saw in Kenya.

My rock-throwing did nothing1, so we were forced to use the sword, which is a rather effective bug-dislodging device.

While I enjoy and appreciate nature, I like to maintain the boundary between “me” and “fearsomely huge insects” when I’m outside, and particularly so when I’m inside (be it my apartment or a tent).

  1. There’s no way I’m getting close to it. Screw that. [↩]

Humor, Personal Comments 8 Jul 6th, 2009

8 Responses to “On Bugs”

  1. Eric Shelton Says:
    July 7th, 2009 at 12:21 am

    What was it?! Do Palo Verde Beetles fly?

  2. Arizona Rifleman Says:
    July 7th, 2009 at 12:31 am

    Eric: That’s the beast. Evidently it can fly.

  3. Plamadude30k Says:
    July 7th, 2009 at 1:00 am

    Friggin’ thing is probably still out there. I’m not going to leave my apartment tomorrow unless I am fully armed with lasers and my sword.

  4. Eric Shelton Says:
    July 7th, 2009 at 1:02 am

    We caught one when I worked at 2nd Amendment Sports. Those things bite so hard it rang the steel targets we held it up to like a gong.

  5. An…interesting experience. - Resonant Constellation Says:
    July 7th, 2009 at 1:13 am

    [...] Note: We later found out that this bug is a Palo Verde Beetle. They can apparently get to be 6 inches long. Pete has another, slightly different account of the incident here. [...]

  6. Jon Says:
    July 7th, 2009 at 11:26 pm

    Sword?

  7. Arizona Rifleman Says:
    July 8th, 2009 at 12:48 am

    Jon: Indeed, a rapier.

  8. Jon Says:
    July 8th, 2009 at 12:50 am

    Excellent – I own several myself.

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