Blogs, because sometimes you just need somewhere to share the things you can’t really share anywhere else.
I mentioned somewhere at some point that the things I think are normal, other people don’t think are normal, and the things I think are interesting, others might completely disagree with. As I’ve gotten involved with, you know, isopods and spiders and all that good stuff, it became very clear. Very few people I’ve shared with were like, “Oh cool!”—everybody else had other reactions. (And not the good kind.) So I learned: it’s okay not to share everything. Sometimes, it’s wiser to redirect what you share and where you share it. And that, my friends, is why we’re here today.
So… Joe.
Joe has been an entire experience. If you’re new here, Joe is my beautiful Regal Jumping Spider. I just recently got her, and along with her purchase, I also picked up what I now call puking little unhatched flies—because that’s what they feel like at this point. I was thinking this was going to be a fast turnaround, like, “Boom! Hatch! Food! Eat! Yay!” Nah. They still haven’t hatched. Still sitting there.
And Joe still hadn’t eaten.
Last night, I set up a little ego environment for working (it’s really cute), and I had Joe’s enclosure close by while I worked on school stuff. She was active, moving around—and then I saw something disturbing. Joe started trying to hunt the isopods.
My isopods. The ones I thought were completely safe with her. The audacity.
Learning as I go, I found out that if she’s really hungry, anything moving becomes fair game. Isopods? Fair game. That made me realize—okay, she needs real food, and she needs it now. The little thing I had in her bowl all week wasn’t it. It was barely moving, soft, and not alive enough to trigger her hunting instincts.
It’s almost midnight, and I’m like, Can you DoorDash crickets? (Spoiler: probably not). So I placed an online order for pickup, planning to grab crickets the next day.
Well, the next day came, and like most days, it did not go as planned. Suddenly it’s four o’clock and I’m still nowhere near picking up the crickets. Knowing Joe was probably starving, I found a nearby reptile place and decided to check it out.
First time going inside. Whoa.
They had everything in there. Giant spiders. Giant snakes. Creatures I’ve never even seen before. Full government names on everything. It was a whole new world.
The lady asked what I needed, and I’m like, “Six small crickets, please.”
She brings out these tiny little ones, perfect for Joe. (Not the monster ones she first showed me—like ma’am, Joe would not eat those.)
While I was there, I saw other isopods too—and realized I really, really prefer my Cubaris murina (Florida Orange) species over others. Some of those other species were cutting up in their little containers, wild. Not as cute, honestly. Give me my chill little Cubaris any day.
They had all kinds of tarantulas, snakes (tiny ones in cups, hilarious), and then…
A massive python.
Y’all.
A huge python. Just chilling. I don’t know who needs to hear this, but I am not buying anything that could possibly eat me. No monitors either (heard crazy things about those). I’m good. I’ll stick to creatures that stay on the manageable side of life.
(And yes, I’m the same person who dreams of owning a mini farm one day. Three alpacas, one emu, miniature cows, ducks, chickens, two horses, a buffalo—yes, a buffalo—and maybe a few goats and sheep. But not a python.)
Anyway.
I grabbed my crickets, made it home, and Joe was sitting right at her feeding bowl, waiting. I dropped a little cricket in there—and bless her little hunter heart—Joe tried to catch both the cricket and the little leftover unhatched thing at the same time. Girl was hungry.
I didn’t get to stay and watch the full show, but she finally had some proper food.
Crisis averted.
Joe: 1. Starvation: 0.
Final thoughts?
There are so many pockets of life in my day, little worlds within my world. And it’s funny—like really funny—how much happens that most people will never even know about unless I share it here. So here’s to sharing with those interested enough to listen.
If you have reptiles, spiders, isopods—or you’re just into uncommon, wonderful little worlds too—talk to me. Share your experience. I know I’m not the only one out here.
And yes, if you know a place that DoorDashes crickets, I need you to hit me up immediately.
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