As promised, here is a picture of one of our native spiders. As seen in the picture they do like to hide in boxes. Hence my first up close introduction of one. While out on the jobsite, I usually install most hardware...hurricane straps, clips and whatnot. The arrive on the jobsite in boxes. These boxes are usually opened by someone else before we arrive to do our part of the job. I am reaching into the box to get the straps out and then I see the legs....my hand is almost touching the damn legs. I pull my hand so fast out of the box that it sends the box, spider and straps flying. The spider comes flying out of the box, lands then starts running straight at me. Now I am sure he did not me to run at me as if in an attack, but hey, I was freaked. I become a screaming lunatic, running out of the house. My husband thinks I have somehow cut my hand off, comes flying down the ladder to see if I'm ok. I tell him of the spider and he goes back into the house to take a look and get rid of said spider. After taking it to the woods on a large piece of cardboard he walks over smiling and says, "oh, yeah I forgot to tell you about those." I went home for the day.

This is just one of my runins with this type of spider. I have found at least 3 in my home over the last 10 years of living here. The last run in was when my youngest son and I were in the pool just a few weeks ago. Now we have an above ground pool which means you must exit the pool by ladder, "ONE" ladder. My husband is outside the pool and discovers the spider on the side of the pool. He trys to get the spider off...The sucker runs up the side of the pool and JUMPS in the pool with son and me. Lets just say we set a new record for speed running in water trying to cross the pool and get out. I had no voice the rest of the day from screaming so loudly. My poor son jumped from the top of the ladder and ran in the house refusing to get back in the pool or go in the back yard for a week. Hubby had to tell him he killed the spider before he would get back in the pool. We have no clue where the spider went in reality. He is still out there lurking in the back yard somewhere. My oldest son shares my phobia of spiders as well, but in spades. he was watching TV on night with all lights out in the living room. All of a sudden big long legs cross the TV screen. My son is like 3ft from the TV. He screams and runs out the front door, re-emerges in the house through the back door still screaming theres a spider. I have to kill this thing as husband is not home. Yes, I killed it. I did not catch and release...sorry. He was on my turf. I got bug spray and coated the thing white. It then ran straight for me and I screaming my head off grab our very large phone book that weighs about 3lbs and throw it on top of the spider. The phone book stayed where it landed till hubby came home. My oldest son will not watch TV in the dark in the living at all anymore. That was in 2003. Ther is also another large spider here. It is a banana spider. I have yet to deal with this spider. It is bigger than the spider I have posted. Hubby tells me they stay mainly in the orange groves. He told me this after he planted 3 fruit trees in the back. He told me as kids they use to go in the orange groves with be-be guns and shoot these things down. I was like, "they are large enough to shot?!" He goes,"Oh yeah." Sometimes I just wanna smack him.....