Squashed a bug for my roommate

[bi_weird]

Yes, I swear this has a point. I really hate killing bugs, so there could be no way my roommate would think that I was a good person to ask this. She was in the bathroom and started squealing - I really don't get girls sometimes - and shouted for me to come in. Turns out there was this little bug which she needed killed and asked me to do it.
I don't know how it works, but that's me. At my old place, when the toilet was broken I was the one who was asked to fix it. I lifted things for the other girls even though I'm not the strongest, and anything broken was my responsibility. I've joked about it before, but it really is true: I'm the man of my house (or apartment now). When a group of girls wants to be squealy and giddy and needs someone to rescue them, if there's no guy around it's me, and half the time even if there is a guy around it's still me.
What's interesting is that I find that girls are more likely to act in this way. Guys tend to be extreme, in that either they hold doors for me or they wrestle with me, but there are few in the latter category. Girls on the other hand often fall into the club that expects that sort of masculine behavior from me, even while gossiping with me. Can anyone else relate to any of this?

[Laurie909]

Usually when I see a bug (alive or dead), I let out a scream. I've squashed a few, but I had to summon up my courage to do it.....it certainly didn't come naturally.

[Teresa Amina]

Bugs freaked me out as a kid, something that I "inherited" from my mother, who never saw a bug she didn't fear. But raised as a guy you learn to deal with it and dispatch them to the next world. I do give them a chance; if they have wings I'll try to get them to leave out an open window or door, if legged to get back under whatever they came from. But if they just stand there they're doomed :devil: Especially if they were so thoughtless as to be in the sink or bathtub- I love to scald them and wash their little boiled bodies down the drain :D

[CaptLex]

Maybe it's 'cause you're tall, Bi. I guess height can give an air of masculinity or something like that. I'm 5'2", so nobody ever asks me to lift stuff and they're surprised when I just jump in and do it. I have been asked to kill bugs, though (yes, usually accompanied by screaming or squealing). I usually just catch them and set them free (especially spiders). The only ones I really hate are roaches and waterbugs (huge roaches, really). I've forced myself to kill them, but they just gross me out. Cool that they see you as they guy who can take care of stuff. :happy:

[Kate Simmons]

I'll take care of them for you folks. I'm a former pest control technician. We didn't squash 'em though, we just exterminated 'em. Anyway, I have all the training and certainly am not afraid of them.;):battingeyelashes:

[Cai]

Maybe it's 'cause you're tall, Bi. I guess height can give an air of masculinity or something like that. I'm 5'2", so nobody ever asks me to lift stuff and they're surprised when I just jump in and do it. I have been asked to kill bugs, though (yes, usually accompanied by screaming or squealing). I usually just catch them and set them free (especially spiders). The only ones I really hate are roaches and waterbugs (huge roaches, really). I've forced myself to kill them, but they just gross me out. Cool that they see you as they guy who can take care of stuff. :happy:

That's been my experience too. People are surprised that I can actually lift things, carry things, etc. But since I live in a women's dorm, no one wants to kill bugs. I'm the pratically only one who isn't afraid to do it, so they yell for me. At which point I scoop them onto a notecard and carry them outside, because I don't like to kill them either. :heehee:

[Kieron Andrew]

Sounds like all these people see the masculine side of you more so than the feminine.....i find its a great feeling to be seen as a protector :)

[Emily Ann Brown]

OKAY...so now we know who to call for bug removal.....who handles snakes?


Emily Ann

[Kieron Andrew]

who handles snakes?


Emily Ann
me!, i love snakes & Lizards, hate spiders and i am totally petrified of moths,

[ZenFrost]

Something like that happened to me yesterday. My cousin needed to use the hose for something but she wouldn't turn it on because there was a spiderweb nearby. So I had to go and turn it on (and off later) for her. I'm really not a big fan of bugs (and I can't stand squishing them) but like you said, I just don't get girls sometimes. I told her "You're such a girl!" and somehow other people thought that was funny. :straightface: I guess 'cause they see me as a girl still.



OKAY...so now we know who to call for bug removal.....who handles snakes?

Ooh! Me! Me! Me! Pick me! I absolutely adore snakes, especially as pets.

Cats? No. Dogs? No. Snakes? Heck yeah!

[Teresa Amina]

i am totally petrified of moths,

Had a really giant one in my house a week or two back- I heard it as it flew past my head! :eek:
There is one really good bug, though- the Praying Mantis :thumbsup: Eats the other bugs and looks like it came out of a monster movie. In fact, back in the '50s there was a movie called Deadly Mantis. The giant bug attacked New York (what is it about New York that everyone wants to attack it? :D)

[Dasein9]

Oh, I squeal at bugs too. Am downright phobic, actually. Lex saw me encounter a water bug on the street once, and I squealed away from it in my combat boots. That must've been a sight!

When I was a kid, some "big kids" (sixth-graders!) chased me with a really big, hairy spider that hissed. One of the boys picked it up on his foot, and it covered his whole foot. Seriously, this thing was about 8" in diameter. Since then, I've been unable to abide anything with more than four legs.

One more story -- For a while, I rented a room from a gay couple. One night, at around 2 or 3 in the morning, when I was working on a paper, I looked up and saw a 3" water bug over my door. I couldn't go get the RAID because I couldn't go through the door. I grabbed a can of hairspray I used for charcoal drawings, crept close enough to spray it, then leapt back. I did this a few times, and it did put the bug in distress. I guess I whimpered too, because all of a sudden, the door burst open, and my roommates came running in, buck-naked, one carrying a hammer and the other carrying a tennis raquet! They heard me and thought I was being raped or something! They got the bug, too.

[ZenFrost]

Oh, I squeal at bugs too. Am downright phobic, actually. Lex saw me encounter a water bug on the street once, and I squealed away from it in my combat boots. That must've been a sight!

When I was a kid, some "big kids" (sixth-graders!) chased me with a really big, hairy spider that hissed. One of the boys picked it up on his foot, and it covered his whole foot. Seriously, this thing was about 8" in diameter. Since then, I've been unable to abide anything with more than four legs.

One more story -- For a while, I rented a room from a gay couple. One night, at around 2 or 3 in the morning, when I was working on a paper, I looked up and saw a 3" water bug over my door. I couldn't go get the RAID because I couldn't go through the door. I grabbed a can of hairspray I used for charcoal drawings, crept close enough to spray it, then leapt back. I did this a few times, and it did put the bug in distress. I guess I whimpered too, because all of a sudden, the door burst open, and my roommates came running in, buck-naked, one carrying a hammer and the other carrying a tennis raquet! They heard me and thought I was being raped or something! They got the bug, too.

Oh too funny Das. :lol:

[CaptLex]

OKAY...so now we know who to call for bug removal.....who handles snakes?
I don't mind handling snakes, as long as they're not poisonous. Poisonous and toxin-filled things are the ones I'll really run away from - bees, wasps, tarantulas, scorpions - that sort of thing. Oh and rats . . .eww, I HATE rats, especially NYC rats . . . they're practically unkillable. Cats and dogs run away from them (I've seen that). And they're very bold (typical NY attitude).

Teresa, spiders are great for getting rid of other insects too, that's why I don't kill them. I'm rather fond of spiders, actually - probaby 'cause Spider-Man is my favorite superhero. I wanna be bitten by a radioactive spider. :heehee:

Oh yeah, Das, I remember the waterbug that made you jump several feet. They just creep me out and then I get all itchy thinking about it. Yuck! And they're hard to kill. You can't squash 'em and if you try they make this really gross sound. Bug spray will get 'em but you have to use a lot and move quickly 'cause they're faster than a freight train. That story about the gay roommates was great - would have loved to have seen that (mmmm naked boys ;)).

Oh geez, I think we took Bi's thread off the rails . . . sowwy. :bonk:

[bi_weird]

Hah no it's cool. Yeah I'm terrified of centipedes, but I feel that's legit. One summer they stalked me: one even came out of the toliet paper tube at three am. Other than that, as long as they aren't on me I like most bugs, and even tolerate most being on me.
But yeah, it's weird how many girls see my masculine attributes, even if I dont' think they realize it. What's frustarting is that when guys do notice it, they tend to be upset at me for being "confrontational". It's like, dude, I'm just acting as competative as you are. I think I offend their masculinity.... *laughs*

[TG-Taru]

I'm not really grossed by any bugs, and only have a natural fear and respect of the poisonous ones. Quite like spiders, butterlies (moths are more boring), lizards, bumblebees. Not too crazy about ants, slugs and snails or rodents. When I meet critters inside, I kill flies and mosquitoes, take bees and spiders outside - stinging things in a glass covered with paper to be safe, spiders on a paper or in my hand, if they're not too scared to climb on it :) -we don't have any spiders that are dangerous to humans here though, and only one species of dangerous snake. Some species of nasty wasps.

[Cai]

Y'know, before today I would have said I wasn't afraid of bugs. But apparently when I'm faced with 2 dozen quarter-sized jumping grasshoppers, I scream.
We moved out of our rental place today, and the crawlspace here is just disgusting, so pulling the bikes and the kayaks out of it meant we got covered in bugs. I am not going to miss this place.

[CaptLex]

Y'know, before today I would have said I wasn't afraid of bugs. But apparently when I'm faced with 2 dozen quarter-sized jumping grasshoppers, I scream.
Eww! Hope that doesn't give me nightmares. Do you guys get those ugly brown locuts down south, too? :p


Yeah I'm terrified of centipedes, but I feel that's legit. One summer they stalked me
You just reminded me - I get stalked by ladybugs for some reason. I wonder what that means. :idontknow: That's really weird too, 'cause you almost never see them in the big city, but I've found them on me on numerous occasions. They're cute, though. :happy:

[Cai]

Eww! Hope that doesn't give me nightmares. Do you guys get those ugly brown locuts down south, too? :p


Yep, all over the place. They eat the little bit of grass that survives the sun. We had a little bit of New York at the rental place too - 2 inch cockroaches under the furniture. Like I said, I won't miss it.

[Tristan]

I hate crickets. Mostly because of their annoying chirps that they make nonstop during mating season.

[Siobhan Marie]

i am totally petrified of moths

It's ok Kieron, I'm frightened of moths too especially the big ones *shivers*

:hugs: Siobhán x

[Laurie909]

If anybody has ever seen the movie "Joe's Apartment"....well, that happened to me in real life (well, the cockroaches weren't singing and dancing but otherwise). I was living in Austin, TX at the time and had just moved in to a new apartment. The first night there I got up in the middle of the night and the kitchen was overrun with roaches. Naturally, I freaked out! And even after they got them under control, I always kept ALL my food in the refrigerator.

[SL]

It's ok Kieron, I'm frightened of moths too especially the big ones *shivers*

:hugs: Siobhán x


Ok, so there is a universal moth thing?
I feel lots better now.
I have actually squished a full grown mouse beneath my shoe, and yet, a moth requires a large object to swing at it from no less than four and a half feet and if it flies in my direction I'm outta there lol.

[Kieron Andrew]

Ok, so there is a universal moth thing?
I feel lots better now.
I have actually squished a full grown mouse beneath my shoe, and yet, a moth requires a large object to swing at it from no less than four and a half feet and if it flies in my direction I'm outta there lol.
lol....i cant even be in the same room as one so you're doing better than me

[ZenFrost]

Ok, so there is a universal moth thing?
I feel lots better now.
I have actually squished a full grown mouse beneath my shoe

Not quite universal, I'm not afraid of moths. I strongly dislike them, yes, but I'm not afraid of them. As for mice... well, I just prefer to let one of my snakes take care of them. :p

[CaptLex]

Moths don't bother me (I almost said "bug" me :p) . . . I just think of them as a butterfly's uglier cousin. :heehee:

[hiro]

To be honest, I probably would have done the same thing. I have a terrible yet irrational fear of bugs. Especially spiders, even though, I know, they're not "technically" bugs. Centipedes and Millipedes too... I freeze, get sick to my stomach, and feel like I was hit by a truck, or something... I try to the Buddhist thing, but since I get other people to do my dirty work, they always end up dead. ;_;


Moths don't bother me (I almost said "bug" me :p) . . . I just think of them as a butterfly's uglier cousin. :heehee:

I don't like either. They're about the same to me, with their erratic flying, and their creepy faces and their icky, buggy bodies.... *shudders*