I posted in the comments of yesterday's "Happy Birthday" blog stating that those of you who are eager beavers and read my blogs as soon as they post are getting rough drafts. It a strange dichotomy. I painstakingly edit and rewrite my articles. I complete re-work articles submitted to the BTS for publication in the Journal or Newsletter. I mercilessly weigh every word and look for any that can be removed. I run through spell-check set to UK English (for the BTS). I scrutinize, analyze and circumsise. Then I get a fresh set of eyes on it, usually those of Stuart Longhorn and Guy Tansley.
However, this blog is just my free-form speed typing, and I can type pretty damn rapidly. I usually hit the spell-check, but it mostly highlights technical and arachno words that just aren't in this Blogger's dictionary. After pecking out my blog entry I click publish. Then I re-read and find errors. Then an hour later I remember something I wanted to add, or clarify, or delete. Then I notice other minor errors and I end up editing each blog entry another several times.
The point: I usually post early in the morning when the sun is still sleeping and I am on my first cup of coffee. The smart reader will wait until afternoon, or perhaps the following day, to read my blog. It evolves over its first few hours online. I know I should spend time editing it, but this isn't a Journal article. It's just my conversation (albeit one-sided, for the most part) with you. It has warts. That may add character, but those like Mr. Patterson and Mr. Campbell, who I know catch up weekly, get to read finished products. The handful of people that view the post within minutes of posting are getting only the initial draft.
*****
One thing I edited into yesterday's entry was further comment about one unnamed dealer (you're smart, you'll figure it out). I'm fresh out of fucks and out of business so I really am not bothered, but I just wanted to educate y'all about the disturbing trend where American importer dealers are really making money for their German exporters and are struggling themselves because the American tarantula hobby is shit - at least from a commercial standpoint. One ill-advised practice is buying what you can't afford and having to quickly pay off an order after the fact. I prepaid every import I every transacted. I am a cash sort of guy. I don't believe in credit. I can afford what I want. But struggling dealers will try to put up half and pay half upon arrival. That means they must quickly make some sales and get money to send to Germany. YES, YOU ARE SUPPORTING GERMAN DEALERS not "buying American". So, especially in the case of the dealer I hinted at, who knows even less about business than he does about tarantulas, he has developed a secret list of friends and loyal customers. He offers species dirt cheap, shitting on market values, to his exclusive group of secret handshake buyers so he can get the funds to pay back an exporter who told me point blank in person at the BTS Exhibition last year that he can only stay in business if he has this American distributing his spiders for him. So our American friend is just a tool. Double entendre perhaps? Allegedly? Everything is alleged ;)
*****
Since I mentioned the BTS Exhibition, I may as well go on about how excited I am for the May 22, 2016 event. I no longer buy anything and have allowed my import permit to lapse. So, why am I so damn excited. Because it is my 10th trip to the UK and I will be spending a week before the Exhibition in my home-away-from-home Bristol with my brother-from-another-mother Mark Pennell and his lovely wife Kim and my special "niece" Brandon! Plus the complete crew of Pennell family and friends that have become my second family. Only about 35 days until I catch yet another flight to Dublin and then on to Bristol. One week later the Pennell's and I will drive 90 minutes northeast to the Midlands where the event will be held this year for the first time at the Warwickshire Exhibition Centre. We will have 2200 square meters with about 190 tables of arachnids, phasmids, mantids, beetles, books, art, supplies, etc. etc. etc. I care nothing about the live goods, but will look for books and art. I also am the official competition judge and photographer this year. That is another duty that Chairman Peter Kirk has passed on to me. My dear mates Rayzor and Ange Hale are the hosts and organizers of the Exhibition, which this year will celebrate its 31st year. It's a fabulous weekend, despite the fact that everyone is so friggin' busy. The Committee is, the traders are, and even the buyers are distracted and only focused on bug buying. As I've said before, the February Lectures is the better place to socialize.
*****
I certainly am anxious to travel again. I just don't feel right when I am at home for any stretch of time. However, my new business is getting closer to opening and - IF ALL GOES WELL - I will begin moving into my new space just before I leave for the UK. So, I will have to reduce my traveling a bit as I focus on earning a living once again. I prefer retirement and could just keep coasting along, but I need to keep busy and get out of the house.
I do think I'll be making a quick Texas camping trip in two weeks. I originally had another 3 week road trip to Arizona planned, but cancelled that to focus on other responsibilities. However, a couple hotel rooms are paid for and can't be refunded so I think I am going to go chase a few spiders and do some photography. I have a brand new one-man tent and a new sleeping bag designed for side-sleepers like me that I am looking forward to trying out. I think I'll hit the State Park near Laredo and the same on Lake Amistad near Del Rio. Hopefully I can scare up some A. anax and A. moderatum and maybe some herps.
For those keeping score, it continues to rain, sleet, snow here and I'd love to get south. As I type this (on the 8th of April), I am watching some snow fall.
All the best, MJ
Friday, April 8, 2016
Thursday, April 7, 2016
#119 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY: THE TALE OF THE GOLDEN BLUE-LEGGED BABOON SPIDER
The spider in the photograph below is one year old today. This image was captured only moments ago. The depicted yearling tarantula is one of only three remaining holdbacks of the offspring of the Harpactira pulchripes sac I successfully hatched. It was the first American breeding, and was the crown jewel of a half dozen or so American firsts I produced in a short stretch. Today seems like a good time to tell the complete saga of how these then highly coveted "golden blue-legged baboon spiders" made it to America. I was the first to import the species into the US and the first to breed it. Therefore, I feel like I am the only one to tell its American story. It was a passionate pet project of mine that didn't live up to expectations despite the great success. I invested a great deal of money and my was able to produce them and drop the US price from $350 to about $200. But they did not sell as briskly as one would have thought. American hobbyists - overall - are cash poor. Perhaps they should spend less time on Faffbook and work more. And now it seems like at least one dealer is hastily reducing its value. His business model has become: I'll sell cheap to my friends as soon as import lands so I can pay back my German exporter who is the only one making money off of American spider sales. But that's a whole 'nother rant ... Still, that was inevitable as even Thrigmopoeus psychedelicus, or whatever the current flavor of the month now, will quickly follow suit. Fact is, no bug is worth many dollars. It's an illusion that dealers (including myself during my former career) create. Some are just more larcenous than others, and others just clueless. Bugs are just bugs, but everyone chases the next wonder, especially if it's blue. There's no money in bugs. The high rollers are in the reptile world. They've created the illusion that this long-named paint job makes this ball python more than just a friggin' $25 snake. Kudos to them. Tell ya what, the next time I hatch H. pulchripes (I'm still working with 3 females and have the three yearlings for a hopeful male), I'll make sure they are affordable to all.
It seemed like the South African species popped out of nowhere. It was virtually unknown before "someone" allegedly "collected" [read: smuggled] it from its dry earth home in eastern South Africa to a "European" spider room. Then there was a hatching. I was able to import one single spiderling Harpactira pulchripes from that small, and in rabid demand, eggsac. It was the gem among a big import order I placed with Lee Ardern of The Spider Shop, Wales, UK. I paid £140 for the lone spiderling. With the exchange rate at the time and all the costs of the shipment spread out across the value of the 500 or so spiders imported, my cost was $249.19. This first spiderling to live in America arrived on June 16, 2013. He eventually matured male. Sadly, it was long before I had mature females. 250 bucks wasn't bad for the only one in the U.S., especially as it will still be a long time before American dealers had them and they would ask for $350-400.
Of interest are some of the other species received along with my first lone H. pulchripes. The other highlights in the box were Avicularia hirschii (which I would go on to produce a sac of but never hatch), Avic and Tap Colombia (both of which I would be the first to produce), and the first "Omothymus sp. hatihati" in the U.S. plus some Ornithoctoninae sp. Laos and Pterinopelma sazamai.
My next three H. pulchripes were also imported from Lee. They found their way to my spider room on September 10, 2013. They were a bit bigger and the demand had begun to grow. Few were available at it would still be some time before these would be offered in the states. This time his price was £165 and he only had three available to me. I snapped them up and my final adjusted cost was $300.96 each.
The goodies that shared that box included Heterometrus swammerdami, both Pachistopelma rufonigrum and P. bromelicola (both I would go on to be the first American breeder of), more "hatihati", Haplocosmia himalayana, Xenesthis immanis, Monocentropus balfouri and some of the first Dolicothele (then Oligoxystre) diamantinensis plus about twenty other species.
I now had four slings and fed them well. A short time later I heard that a few others had trickled into the U.S. I knew I would be the first to breed them if I could only get some females. However, as these four grew (just ask Chad or Jason on how fast my Ts grow!), they were all confirmed male. If I was a tinfoil hat conspiracy nut, I'd think that the fucking Germans could sex them right out of the sac. I had to buy a female!
In March 2014, I acquired two females and a mature male. That would be the short story. The long one is quite involved and I will divulge it here. Until now, only a handful of confidants are privy to the tale I'm about to tell. But I won't tease you along. Your first question will probably be how much I paid for these two females and the male. The truth is that I don't recall. The amount was obscene. Previous to these two girls the most I had ever paid for a spider was $500 for an adult female Poecilotheria metallica when they were relatively new to the hobby. That's a story in itself so allow me to digress a bit here ... The reader's digest version is that one of my most annoying customers at the retail shop I had in Nashville (The Living Terrarium & Spider Shoppe) bought all kinds of expensive bugs from me. Then he had to have an adult female P. metallica and Kelly Swift sold him one. For $1000! This young customer changed his mind every five minutes and had more money than sense by a longshot. Not too long after coughing up a cool grand to Swifty I was able to talk him out of it for $500. He ate the other five bills just because that week he happened to be in a Xenesthis or monitor lizard mood.
OK, back to the über-expensive Harpactira pulchripes females ... on the record sheet that I tracked every single spider that went through SPIDERSHOPPE I have their price recorded as "mega". Don't believe me? Check out this screen cap:
 |
| This yearling Harpactira pulchripes reached 2nd instar on April 7, 2015. It was the first hatched in the U.S. |
It seemed like the South African species popped out of nowhere. It was virtually unknown before "someone" allegedly "collected" [read: smuggled] it from its dry earth home in eastern South Africa to a "European" spider room. Then there was a hatching. I was able to import one single spiderling Harpactira pulchripes from that small, and in rabid demand, eggsac. It was the gem among a big import order I placed with Lee Ardern of The Spider Shop, Wales, UK. I paid £140 for the lone spiderling. With the exchange rate at the time and all the costs of the shipment spread out across the value of the 500 or so spiders imported, my cost was $249.19. This first spiderling to live in America arrived on June 16, 2013. He eventually matured male. Sadly, it was long before I had mature females. 250 bucks wasn't bad for the only one in the U.S., especially as it will still be a long time before American dealers had them and they would ask for $350-400.
Of interest are some of the other species received along with my first lone H. pulchripes. The other highlights in the box were Avicularia hirschii (which I would go on to produce a sac of but never hatch), Avic and Tap Colombia (both of which I would be the first to produce), and the first "Omothymus sp. hatihati" in the U.S. plus some Ornithoctoninae sp. Laos and Pterinopelma sazamai.
My next three H. pulchripes were also imported from Lee. They found their way to my spider room on September 10, 2013. They were a bit bigger and the demand had begun to grow. Few were available at it would still be some time before these would be offered in the states. This time his price was £165 and he only had three available to me. I snapped them up and my final adjusted cost was $300.96 each.
The goodies that shared that box included Heterometrus swammerdami, both Pachistopelma rufonigrum and P. bromelicola (both I would go on to be the first American breeder of), more "hatihati", Haplocosmia himalayana, Xenesthis immanis, Monocentropus balfouri and some of the first Dolicothele (then Oligoxystre) diamantinensis plus about twenty other species.
I now had four slings and fed them well. A short time later I heard that a few others had trickled into the U.S. I knew I would be the first to breed them if I could only get some females. However, as these four grew (just ask Chad or Jason on how fast my Ts grow!), they were all confirmed male. If I was a tinfoil hat conspiracy nut, I'd think that the fucking Germans could sex them right out of the sac. I had to buy a female!
In March 2014, I acquired two females and a mature male. That would be the short story. The long one is quite involved and I will divulge it here. Until now, only a handful of confidants are privy to the tale I'm about to tell. But I won't tease you along. Your first question will probably be how much I paid for these two females and the male. The truth is that I don't recall. The amount was obscene. Previous to these two girls the most I had ever paid for a spider was $500 for an adult female Poecilotheria metallica when they were relatively new to the hobby. That's a story in itself so allow me to digress a bit here ... The reader's digest version is that one of my most annoying customers at the retail shop I had in Nashville (The Living Terrarium & Spider Shoppe) bought all kinds of expensive bugs from me. Then he had to have an adult female P. metallica and Kelly Swift sold him one. For $1000! This young customer changed his mind every five minutes and had more money than sense by a longshot. Not too long after coughing up a cool grand to Swifty I was able to talk him out of it for $500. He ate the other five bills just because that week he happened to be in a Xenesthis or monitor lizard mood.
OK, back to the über-expensive Harpactira pulchripes females ... on the record sheet that I tracked every single spider that went through SPIDERSHOPPE I have their price recorded as "mega". Don't believe me? Check out this screen cap:
For the sake of discussion let's just say that the three spiders were three thousand dollars. That's an even figure in the vicinity at least. There were also the costs of importing and shipping and, as you are about to read, the path to me was a convoluted corkscrew of possum shit.
I eventually did receive the spiders alive on March 13, 2014, as you can see from the screen cap. It was the day of the first ArachnoGathering. And the spiders were at Tinley with us.
To be honest, my memory isn't what it used to be, but I'll try to recount the events. I became obsessed with locating female H. pulchripes, but realized full well that it was a search that was likely to be unsuccessful. Who would want to give up females of what was then the hot new spider? My persistence eventually paid off. On Terraristik Anzeigen I caught wind of a group that might be available and negotiations also took place via Facebook. The seller was a German. That was no surprise. I make no accusations. I allege nothing. But almost every single "new species" pops up in Germany first. You do the math.
However, I will tell you the facts. I have nothing against Germans and have some good friends among German arachnoculturists. However, the country has had more than its share of sellers of animals of questionable origin. Let's just say that. Those that might have access to surprising species often use assumed names on social media. That was the case with my seller. I began to know him by a completely fictitious name that he used on Facebook (Tim Köhler). I did not learn his real name until it came time for me to wire him a significant sum of money. In addition to the very high cost of my 1.2 Harpactira pulchripes, I was also obtaining a pair of Theraphosinae sp. Panama from him for Jason Newland.
Before I sent the money, "Tim" was in contact with me frequently. We went back and forth via Facebook Messenger. The first thing that struck me with how his ability to write English went back and forth from terrible to good. This isn't the first time I've encountered this phenomenon among animal peddlers. He could understand what he wanted to hear, but not what he didn't. He could write what he wanted from you, but not write a response to your own questions. I began to consider backing out of the deal, but I was completely obsessed with the species and I had to acquire females regardless of cost or hassle. I started looking at plane tickets to Germany to pick them up by hand. The big Hamm reptile show was coming up and, at some point, Tim (turned out that is his first name, but Köhler, which means "cool" is a pseudonym), said he would be at the show. I started thinking my safest bet was to travel to Germany, but Tim wanted the money first. The only thing that kept me from backing out of the deal is that I was chatting with Russ Gurley and found out that he had done business with him as well. It was then that I learned that Russ had a few of the species himself.
After much deliberation I sent this anonymous German four grand or so. I had asked everyone I knew about him and everyone agreed that he was a complete flake and a shady character, but that it was very unlikely I would be ripped off. I actually didn't worry so much about the latter. I had made my purchase high profile enough that the European community would be aware of any rip off and he would be done, plus I had no qualms about catching a plane to Deutschland to stand my boot upon his temple.
With the money sent and received, I began to hear very little from Tim. He was constantly in contact when he wanted my money, but disappeared for long stretches after he had it. I became very anxious and very angry. We had cooked up a plan where Russ would pick up the spiders at the Hamm show. He was going there and could then drop them off with Reptile Industries' European distributor. They were running a service for American buyers at the German reptile show where they would export your purchases back to the Reptile Industries compound in Florida and then ship them via FedEx to the buyer. So many things to go wrong ...
Eventually I got in touch with both Tim and Russ (Russ is also notoriously difficult to reach via either phone or email!) and they agreed to text each other while at the show. But then I heard nothing from them for an excruciatingly frustrating amount of time. I was wound like a top. I sent so many unanswered messages to both of them. I was cussing myself out for being so reckless. I wanted to head to O'Hare and get my ass to Germany.
Somehow, some way, I eventually got word from Russ that he had the spiders. I almost had a cardiac event. He said that this douchebag (Tim Ranl is his real name) texted him, but refused to go out of his way to meet Russ somewhere at the venue. He ended up unceremoniously just leaving them at some friends booth where, thankfully, Russ was able to retrieve them.
In the meantime, I had been doing some paperwork and correspondence with Reptile Industries in Florida, which is owned by Mark and Kim Bell, two reptile world legends who have an amazing facility. I first met them when they were much greener and were mostly selling colubrid snakes that Mark was breeding. They were living in Michigan and actually exhibited at our podunk local show when it was still Lee Watson's Reptile Swap. I was going to IHS symposia thirty years ago that the Bell's would attend. Nowadays, Kim runs the business and Mark enjoys his herds of tortoises and other critters. It's become huge. It seems Kim has gone out of her way to create a largely female office staff and I did not enjoy working with them at all. I was beginning to wonder if one competent person would ever be involved in this transaction, which, let's remember, was five spiders and a fistful of hundos. Even dealing with RI became a hassle.
I heard nothing more from Tim, Russ or even the girls at RI for some time. Eventually, I contacted RI to ask when they were going to ship my spiders. They said they were all fine and in their office. They said they "looked skinny" so a couple had been offered crickets and ate. They had planned to ship in a couple of days. I heard nothing more so I called and said, "will you be shipping soon?" They said they had the day before. I said, 'WHAT THE FUCK!!!!!!!". No word on shipping, no email with tracking number, no nothing. I said do you have a tracking number. They did. But it proved that they had shipped by spiders to FUCKING ARIZONA! I lost my mind. Some poor girl had to listen to me berate her about the cost of these spiders and the brutal experience the entire process of obtaining them had already been. It turns out they sent them to some gecko guy in AZ. Don't know how they could make that big of a mistake. They never even apologized. I learned after the fact that RI ceased doing the Hamm imports because my error was the final straw in their frustration with facilitating the export and import. They blamed their European distributor for everything. One big problem was all I instructed Ranl was to put my name and species on containers as RI had instructed me. Instead, the moron put Gurley's name and you could barely read it and no species. RI got confused. And, once again, never apologized. They did, however, get the gecko guy in AZ on the phone. He had received the spiders and, no doubt, was shocked when he opened his box. Reptile Industries asked for his return shipment and said they would provide the shipping label and send a FedEx driver to pick it up. The gecko guy said he had no heat packs and, get this, didn't have enough money to buy hand warmers at Home Depot or something. I was furious. RI said they would send him heat packs. It may have been mild in AZ and Florida, but it wouldn't be in between.
So now, after being shipped from Germany to wherever to Florida to Arizona, the spiders would be shipped back to Florida for repacking and then sent on to me outside of Chicago. What an ordeal. It turns out that RI would re-ship them on the Thursday before the NARBC Tinley Park, which was the day before my first ArachnoGathering and set-up for the show. I had planned to leave my house with my truckload of booth at 9:30 a.m., but now would have to wait on the FedEx driver. I had rented a big cargo van and filled it with spiders and displays, plus all the stuff for ArachnoGathering and my luggage. I sat in my cold Huntley driveway with the van running waiting for the FedEx guy. It was March in Chicago and, even with all of the problems so far, all I was worried about that morning was that the spiders weren't freezing on the FedEx delivery truck. Once he arrived, I quickly opened the box while sitting behind the driver's seat. To my horror, the spiders were terribly packed. This idiot Tim had delivered them to Hamm on that clay desert lizard substrate in big, cheap plastic deli containers. Of course, Reptile Industries is used to shipping wild-caught rose hairs in the same deli cups they were imported in. They don't know any better. Much to my surprise all the spiders were alive and unharmed. They couldn't have been packed worse. I was pissed at everyone involved, but overjoyed to see a mature male and two females, one of which was larger than I had any idea the species I could get.
Many of the people who attended Tinley at the first ArachnoGathering got to take a peak at my prize spiders. The smaller of the two females from Ranl is the mother of the spider that began this long blog entry. One of the second group I imported - the three larger spiderlings - was the father of my H. pulchripes sac (if memory serves). The details would be in the linked posts below.
That is the tale of how the first "golden blue-legged baboon spiders" made it to America and the story of the ordeal of obtaining adults in order to successfully breed them. There is an Arachnoboards photo thread I created with my pix from various stages of the process. There also is a Breeding Report that details my first American breeding. If you have the time, these two AB threads are good companions to this lengthy tale. I hope you've enjoyed.
MJ
Monday, April 4, 2016
#118 - THE PEANUT GALLERY
Here are the comments I've received:
April 3, 2016 at 6:58 PM
Suggestion time
Some true talk
Suggestion time
Some insect talk
Suggestion time
Tat talk
Suggestion time
Insitu in USA....
HEH HEH.....just bustin Mikes chops
(John) Apple
April 3, 2016 at 9:15 PM
Here's your orange.
(Chad Campbell)
***********************
"Some true talk"
I expect John wants me to talk about araneomorph spiders. I just did! Did you see the article on Heteropoda sp. I co-authored with Tom Patterson in the Journal of the British Tarantula Society 31(1)? I know you did. I saw your comment. That wasn't enough?!?
For those of you who don't know my bro Apple like I do, he's a simple guy. With full-color complete arm tattoo sleeves, long grey billy goat beard and heavy arachnid-themed silver jewelry I'm sure he scares the neighbors. I know I do. But we all know that he is just an alien robot masquerading as a human and programmed to spout everything about native "true" spiders.
Q: "Hey John, do you need another beer or want to order some food"
A: "I could eat. Do you know that Araneus trifolium make it sausage pizza has white bands on the legs and I'll have a Tiger after this hit, but the brightest orange shamrock spiders can be called pumpkin spiders. Chicago pizza is awesome."
This is how our conversations go. John has his own language. You could ask him about ISIS and he will reply with some obscure araneomorph that only lives under yellow pine boards in limestone cellars near meth labs.
@phormingochilus Chad "Advan" mountain man Campbell is, on the other hand, a man of few words – and many beers. "Here's your orange". A conversation starter if there ever was one. He's not like an apple.
Back to John ... "insect talk" ... mosquitos and flies suck. I harm no other creatures, but will smack them dead with pleasure. Done. Seriously, I love all creepy crawlies, but am no entomologist. My favorite insects are very difficult to photograph, especially if you have a short temper and little patience like me. Fuck taking photos of butterflies. I gave up on that in Suriname in 2012. Dragonflies and damselflies... easier but I don't have the patience to sit in wait. The dobsonflies I found outside our bungalows in Costa Rica this past December were pretty damn cool. When I travel with Paul Carpenter and Guy Tansley, they know all the bugs and identify them for me. But I'll stick to spiders and herps...
"Tat talk" - you and I have loads. What else is there to say. Actually as they're complete sleeves they are many that have become one. I figure I'm at about 70-80 hours of ink. Looking forward to another 5 or 6 from Mark in England in 40 days and a couple from Brandon as well. I think that's all my readers really want to hear about tattooing. Let's move on ...
"Insitu in USA" - you're going to have to translate that from Apple to English for me. Of course, the term "in situ" is Latin for "on site" or "in position". I most commonly use it when I share my photographs. Strictly, in situ (at least as it refers to photography) means that the live subject was photographed (or filmed) in nature exactly where it was found. However, IMO, it qualifies as in situ if it was found in nature, but photographed in a controlled setting perhaps away from collecting site before being released back where it was found.
But what does "Insitu in USA" mean? I'll give you a little tease ... this phrase may become more important to me soon. There are loads of interesting arachnids in the USA, and I don't always have to circumnavigate the globe to find the "grass is greener" exotics. Ponder on that. Let's just say that I intend to take a trip to Texas in late April and it will just be a beginning.
MJ
PS - As a call back to the recent blog entry, last night's season finale of The Walking Dead was gripping. Terror, brutality, cliffhanger.
April 3, 2016 at 6:58 PM
Suggestion time
Some true talk
Suggestion time
Some insect talk
Suggestion time
Tat talk
Suggestion time
Insitu in USA....
HEH HEH.....just bustin Mikes chops
(John) Apple
April 3, 2016 at 9:15 PM
Here's your orange.
(Chad Campbell)
***********************
"Some true talk"
I expect John wants me to talk about araneomorph spiders. I just did! Did you see the article on Heteropoda sp. I co-authored with Tom Patterson in the Journal of the British Tarantula Society 31(1)? I know you did. I saw your comment. That wasn't enough?!?
For those of you who don't know my bro Apple like I do, he's a simple guy. With full-color complete arm tattoo sleeves, long grey billy goat beard and heavy arachnid-themed silver jewelry I'm sure he scares the neighbors. I know I do. But we all know that he is just an alien robot masquerading as a human and programmed to spout everything about native "true" spiders.
Q: "Hey John, do you need another beer or want to order some food"
A: "I could eat. Do you know that Araneus trifolium make it sausage pizza has white bands on the legs and I'll have a Tiger after this hit, but the brightest orange shamrock spiders can be called pumpkin spiders. Chicago pizza is awesome."
This is how our conversations go. John has his own language. You could ask him about ISIS and he will reply with some obscure araneomorph that only lives under yellow pine boards in limestone cellars near meth labs.
@phormingochilus Chad "Advan" mountain man Campbell is, on the other hand, a man of few words – and many beers. "Here's your orange". A conversation starter if there ever was one. He's not like an apple.
Back to John ... "insect talk" ... mosquitos and flies suck. I harm no other creatures, but will smack them dead with pleasure. Done. Seriously, I love all creepy crawlies, but am no entomologist. My favorite insects are very difficult to photograph, especially if you have a short temper and little patience like me. Fuck taking photos of butterflies. I gave up on that in Suriname in 2012. Dragonflies and damselflies... easier but I don't have the patience to sit in wait. The dobsonflies I found outside our bungalows in Costa Rica this past December were pretty damn cool. When I travel with Paul Carpenter and Guy Tansley, they know all the bugs and identify them for me. But I'll stick to spiders and herps...
"Tat talk" - you and I have loads. What else is there to say. Actually as they're complete sleeves they are many that have become one. I figure I'm at about 70-80 hours of ink. Looking forward to another 5 or 6 from Mark in England in 40 days and a couple from Brandon as well. I think that's all my readers really want to hear about tattooing. Let's move on ...
"Insitu in USA" - you're going to have to translate that from Apple to English for me. Of course, the term "in situ" is Latin for "on site" or "in position". I most commonly use it when I share my photographs. Strictly, in situ (at least as it refers to photography) means that the live subject was photographed (or filmed) in nature exactly where it was found. However, IMO, it qualifies as in situ if it was found in nature, but photographed in a controlled setting perhaps away from collecting site before being released back where it was found.
But what does "Insitu in USA" mean? I'll give you a little tease ... this phrase may become more important to me soon. There are loads of interesting arachnids in the USA, and I don't always have to circumnavigate the globe to find the "grass is greener" exotics. Ponder on that. Let's just say that I intend to take a trip to Texas in late April and it will just be a beginning.
MJ
PS - As a call back to the recent blog entry, last night's season finale of The Walking Dead was gripping. Terror, brutality, cliffhanger.
Saturday, April 2, 2016
#117 - SATURDAY MORNING RANTS
1. It's fucking snowing. Not really. Not by Chicago standards. Just flurries. But it's enough to piss me off. Yesterday I might have thought it a prank. Today it can fuck off.
2. Boycotts? Do they work? I doubt it as the only businesses you're likely to boycott are mega corporations with plenty of non-boycotting patrons. One of my favorite places is Starbucks, but I am starting my boycott of them. That's big for me. There's nothing I love more than Starbucks. They won't care, but my principle is that I don't patronize any place that doesn't allow my constitutional and legal right to carry a concealed handgun. I've known the Starbucks has some "company policy" to that effect, but in Illinois that means fuck all unless they post the no gun (actually, no Beretta pistol) sticker on the entrances. My Starbucks in Huntley doesn't have this regulated and designated sticker on the door. So I haven't taken an anti-Starbucks stance. Yesterday I went to one in the neighboring town and couldn't walk in. I'm done with them. I'll keep making my Black Rifle Coffee Company beans at home in the morning. I only wish Costa was in America (that's the Starbucks equivalent in the UK). Now I know this is my big hairy spider blog and not my triggercontrol blog, but the point is more on whether boycotting is pointless than on my specific reason to boycott any business. The point is that these mega corporations don't care about irrelevant me, even if I am a member of one of America's largest and strongest ranks. And instead of focusing on their product (exceptional espresso beans making 1000 different versions of a simple cup of Joe), these mega corporations want to play politics. They want to adopt a position on an issue. Make fucking coffee you knob headed twats! BTW, if you share my reason, don't go to Buffalo Wild Wings either. I'm not sure why anyone would anyway. The food is shit and the atmosphere is family chaos and overwhelming sports bar gaudiness.
3. The Dead Pool - No, I know nothing about the movie or the story. Not my genre. I'm referring to all the greats we have lost recently. Lemmy, David Bowie, Ronnie Corbett, Glenn Frey, Alan Rickman and, recently, the great Keith Emerson. That's just a short list of those who went to the dirt in 2016 (actually Lemmy was December 28, but it started all this madness). Vanity. Remember her? Prince's protege? Dead at 57. Garry Shandling? I didn't even know that one until today. Happened just over a week ago. I don't read or watch news so I pick things up in the wind. Lemmy was a big shocker because although he was 70, had cancer, and inside was probably 200, he just seemed like he would live forever. Most recently, I was more troubled by the loss of Keith Emerson. I was a huge ELP fan as a kid (and today) and eventually his death was ruled suicide. I'd mention the "fifth Beatle" George Martin but, for fuck's sake, he was 90. Nobody should be alive at 90.
Well, I hope this brings your weekend off to a cheery start. I promise the next blog entry will be all about spiders. Or at least critters. Actually I have an idea... Maybe I'll post something big. Something that you'd want to share on FriendFace, Arachnoboreds, and Twatter. Something that would bring in new readers and maybe keep KMBHS going. 'Cause I ask for comments and I get only my bro Apple. I ask for questions, suggestions, etc. and mostly I get more Apple. Someone toss me a dadgum Orange.
HUGZ< MJ
PS - UPDATE: the gentle snow flurries have turned to sleet/hail. Off to my loading press and then an afternoon of guitar riffle. Fuck Chicago and living close to family. I've got to return to my gypsy life.
2. Boycotts? Do they work? I doubt it as the only businesses you're likely to boycott are mega corporations with plenty of non-boycotting patrons. One of my favorite places is Starbucks, but I am starting my boycott of them. That's big for me. There's nothing I love more than Starbucks. They won't care, but my principle is that I don't patronize any place that doesn't allow my constitutional and legal right to carry a concealed handgun. I've known the Starbucks has some "company policy" to that effect, but in Illinois that means fuck all unless they post the no gun (actually, no Beretta pistol) sticker on the entrances. My Starbucks in Huntley doesn't have this regulated and designated sticker on the door. So I haven't taken an anti-Starbucks stance. Yesterday I went to one in the neighboring town and couldn't walk in. I'm done with them. I'll keep making my Black Rifle Coffee Company beans at home in the morning. I only wish Costa was in America (that's the Starbucks equivalent in the UK). Now I know this is my big hairy spider blog and not my triggercontrol blog, but the point is more on whether boycotting is pointless than on my specific reason to boycott any business. The point is that these mega corporations don't care about irrelevant me, even if I am a member of one of America's largest and strongest ranks. And instead of focusing on their product (exceptional espresso beans making 1000 different versions of a simple cup of Joe), these mega corporations want to play politics. They want to adopt a position on an issue. Make fucking coffee you knob headed twats! BTW, if you share my reason, don't go to Buffalo Wild Wings either. I'm not sure why anyone would anyway. The food is shit and the atmosphere is family chaos and overwhelming sports bar gaudiness.
3. The Dead Pool - No, I know nothing about the movie or the story. Not my genre. I'm referring to all the greats we have lost recently. Lemmy, David Bowie, Ronnie Corbett, Glenn Frey, Alan Rickman and, recently, the great Keith Emerson. That's just a short list of those who went to the dirt in 2016 (actually Lemmy was December 28, but it started all this madness). Vanity. Remember her? Prince's protege? Dead at 57. Garry Shandling? I didn't even know that one until today. Happened just over a week ago. I don't read or watch news so I pick things up in the wind. Lemmy was a big shocker because although he was 70, had cancer, and inside was probably 200, he just seemed like he would live forever. Most recently, I was more troubled by the loss of Keith Emerson. I was a huge ELP fan as a kid (and today) and eventually his death was ruled suicide. I'd mention the "fifth Beatle" George Martin but, for fuck's sake, he was 90. Nobody should be alive at 90.
Well, I hope this brings your weekend off to a cheery start. I promise the next blog entry will be all about spiders. Or at least critters. Actually I have an idea... Maybe I'll post something big. Something that you'd want to share on FriendFace, Arachnoboreds, and Twatter. Something that would bring in new readers and maybe keep KMBHS going. 'Cause I ask for comments and I get only my bro Apple. I ask for questions, suggestions, etc. and mostly I get more Apple. Someone toss me a dadgum Orange.
HUGZ< MJ
PS - UPDATE: the gentle snow flurries have turned to sleet/hail. Off to my loading press and then an afternoon of guitar riffle. Fuck Chicago and living close to family. I've got to return to my gypsy life.
Thursday, March 31, 2016
#116 - EXCELLENCE IN TELEVISION
PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT THIS BLOG ENTRY IS COMPLETELY FUCKING OFF-TOPIC. PROCEED OR DON'T.
There was a time when the title to this blog would have been as oxymoronic as jumbo shrimp, military intelligence or happily married. "Excellence in Television" ... years ago that was an elusive concept.
There also was a time when I would be the last guy alive writing a blog like this. I've always been a film buff, but I've gone through periods of time as long as ten years plus when I didn't even own a TV. I am (or was) a TV hater. Idiot box. Boob tube. Wasteland. 400 channels of shit to choose from.
Then there is the Internet. Although without TV and cable for years, I'm eternally online. So, I became involved in streaming media. I discovered the rare exceptions to the TV is shit rule. Often these came as recommendations from TV using friends and family. I soon learned that film had become the medium where good movies are scarce, whereas TV had surpassed anticipated quality in writing, acting and production.
I became a BINGE WATCHER. With no TV I streamed everything and between Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu Plus, etc. I could binge watch the series that friends, IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes had made me aware of. I love watching episode after episode so there is a continuum of story. Since I was breeding and selling spiders until recently, I had the time while feeding slings all day, every day.
Before I get into my list of favorite television programs, which I offer up as recommendations to you, I should comment on my current use of "live" television. You see I have a very nice modern TV these days. Most of my life I didn't, but when I bought, remodeled and decorated my new house 3 years ago I decided that if I'm going to get Comcast/XFinity internet service I may as well add on cable as well. It mostly goes to waste. My monthly bill is obscene; somewhere around $174. Although I use the Internet incessantly, I can count the number of things I watch "live" on TV on one hand. I don't have a DVR, but I do have OnDemand. Therefore, in fairness, I do watch some current TV programs on delay.
The only "current" network programs I watch are:
One of the first shows I binge watched when I was all set up in my new man cave three years ago was Breaking Bad. It was odd because I think I started watching at the beginning right when the final episode aired. Or maybe I was dreaming it. But, anyway, as far as shows go, you can't do any better and I rolled right through the entire catalog. I had heard so many people talk about it that I gave it a shot and it took immediately. A show that didn't grab me right away but is a favorite up until the present is The Walking Dead. I remember seeing an episode set along a highway and it may have even been live. I caught a couple partial episodes after that, but wasn't immediately taken in. It took a few re-watches, and there were a few stretches where I almost gave up on it, but it became something special and I can't believe that next Sunday night is the season finale.
Anyway ... here's a bunch of shows I recommend (in bold), in on particular order, with or without comment:
True Detective - The first season with Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey was the best television I have ever seen. I could not get into season two and the new cast.
The House of Cards - This show defines the excellence in television for which this blog entry is named. It also is the masterpiece creation of Netflix Original Series, which has produced some of the best shows ever. Season one and two were gripping and superbly twisted. Season three was somewhat less so and delved deep into the politics. Season four (just recently released) was brilliant and tied it all together so far. Sticking in the Netflix arena - let's go with the resurrected Arrested Development, Orange is the New Black, the saving and revivals of The Killing and Longmire, Bloodline, as well as partnership with the UK to bring the absolutely brilliant Sherlock, Peaky Blinders and Ricky Gervais' witty Derek.
You should know that I am a huge Gervais fan and grew up a huge John Cleese fan. British comedy has really been the only comedy for me. I am rarely a fan of American humor. When I was in my teens I watched Monty Python, Two Ronnies (RIP Ronnie Corbett who just died today - see how I tie things together?!?), Dave Allen at Large, Fawlty Towers and such. Later it was The Young 12. Gervais' original The Office and Extras has been watched over and over. MI5, Skins, Coupling, etc. are all great shows. But as a huge fan of the Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant and Karl Pilkington XFM radio and podcast series, I'd have to say my favorite is An Idiot Abroad, where Karl is sent to the worst spots in exotic countries to Gervais' amusement.
What else? Sons of Anarchy would be at the top. I've watched it all several times. One of the many shows I arrived to late and had to catch up with some Netflix binge watching. The Wire I discovered long after the fact and binged as well. On Amazon Prime I love Bosch. Season two's eight episodes were just put online and it didn't take me long to binge through those. Hannibal, of course. Rectify. Believe it or not, I never even had heard of 24, and then eventually binged it via Netflix. I didn't start Six Feet Under until eight or nine years after it had been off the air, but I binged and re-watched.
There were a few shows that I gave a chance to, and watched a lot of episodes of, but eventually gave up on: The Following, The Americans, and Blacklist come to mind. All were interesting initially, but eventually some combination of bad script (e.g., cheesy dialog or unbelievable scenario) and bad acting (all too common in Blacklist and The Following) would turn me sour. The Americans is the diamond in the rough. I just can't get re-interested.
Of course, some modern major network sitcoms have been outstanding. Modern Family is one of the best written and performed, extraordinarily clever and witty comedies ever. And it's American. Go figure. Parks and Recreation was also special.
Guilty pleasures? American Ninja Warrior
And perhaps my favorite TV show of all time: Law and Order. The original. All casts. Current? TWD and The Game of Thrones. Can't wait for the latter to start again in April!
There are many more and I've meandered off into new territory long enough. Just think if I got going on music ...
There was a time when the title to this blog would have been as oxymoronic as jumbo shrimp, military intelligence or happily married. "Excellence in Television" ... years ago that was an elusive concept.
There also was a time when I would be the last guy alive writing a blog like this. I've always been a film buff, but I've gone through periods of time as long as ten years plus when I didn't even own a TV. I am (or was) a TV hater. Idiot box. Boob tube. Wasteland. 400 channels of shit to choose from.
Then there is the Internet. Although without TV and cable for years, I'm eternally online. So, I became involved in streaming media. I discovered the rare exceptions to the TV is shit rule. Often these came as recommendations from TV using friends and family. I soon learned that film had become the medium where good movies are scarce, whereas TV had surpassed anticipated quality in writing, acting and production.
I became a BINGE WATCHER. With no TV I streamed everything and between Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu Plus, etc. I could binge watch the series that friends, IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes had made me aware of. I love watching episode after episode so there is a continuum of story. Since I was breeding and selling spiders until recently, I had the time while feeding slings all day, every day.
Before I get into my list of favorite television programs, which I offer up as recommendations to you, I should comment on my current use of "live" television. You see I have a very nice modern TV these days. Most of my life I didn't, but when I bought, remodeled and decorated my new house 3 years ago I decided that if I'm going to get Comcast/XFinity internet service I may as well add on cable as well. It mostly goes to waste. My monthly bill is obscene; somewhere around $174. Although I use the Internet incessantly, I can count the number of things I watch "live" on TV on one hand. I don't have a DVR, but I do have OnDemand. Therefore, in fairness, I do watch some current TV programs on delay.
The only "current" network programs I watch are:
- Chicago Blackhawks games
- The Walking Dead
- Better Call Saul
- Game of Thrones
- UFC
- Barclays Premier League (real football, not American).
If I had to stretch a list a bit more:
- Ink Master
- Modern Family
One of the first shows I binge watched when I was all set up in my new man cave three years ago was Breaking Bad. It was odd because I think I started watching at the beginning right when the final episode aired. Or maybe I was dreaming it. But, anyway, as far as shows go, you can't do any better and I rolled right through the entire catalog. I had heard so many people talk about it that I gave it a shot and it took immediately. A show that didn't grab me right away but is a favorite up until the present is The Walking Dead. I remember seeing an episode set along a highway and it may have even been live. I caught a couple partial episodes after that, but wasn't immediately taken in. It took a few re-watches, and there were a few stretches where I almost gave up on it, but it became something special and I can't believe that next Sunday night is the season finale.
Anyway ... here's a bunch of shows I recommend (in bold), in on particular order, with or without comment:
True Detective - The first season with Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey was the best television I have ever seen. I could not get into season two and the new cast.
The House of Cards - This show defines the excellence in television for which this blog entry is named. It also is the masterpiece creation of Netflix Original Series, which has produced some of the best shows ever. Season one and two were gripping and superbly twisted. Season three was somewhat less so and delved deep into the politics. Season four (just recently released) was brilliant and tied it all together so far. Sticking in the Netflix arena - let's go with the resurrected Arrested Development, Orange is the New Black, the saving and revivals of The Killing and Longmire, Bloodline, as well as partnership with the UK to bring the absolutely brilliant Sherlock, Peaky Blinders and Ricky Gervais' witty Derek.
You should know that I am a huge Gervais fan and grew up a huge John Cleese fan. British comedy has really been the only comedy for me. I am rarely a fan of American humor. When I was in my teens I watched Monty Python, Two Ronnies (RIP Ronnie Corbett who just died today - see how I tie things together?!?), Dave Allen at Large, Fawlty Towers and such. Later it was The Young 12. Gervais' original The Office and Extras has been watched over and over. MI5, Skins, Coupling, etc. are all great shows. But as a huge fan of the Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant and Karl Pilkington XFM radio and podcast series, I'd have to say my favorite is An Idiot Abroad, where Karl is sent to the worst spots in exotic countries to Gervais' amusement.
What else? Sons of Anarchy would be at the top. I've watched it all several times. One of the many shows I arrived to late and had to catch up with some Netflix binge watching. The Wire I discovered long after the fact and binged as well. On Amazon Prime I love Bosch. Season two's eight episodes were just put online and it didn't take me long to binge through those. Hannibal, of course. Rectify. Believe it or not, I never even had heard of 24, and then eventually binged it via Netflix. I didn't start Six Feet Under until eight or nine years after it had been off the air, but I binged and re-watched.
There were a few shows that I gave a chance to, and watched a lot of episodes of, but eventually gave up on: The Following, The Americans, and Blacklist come to mind. All were interesting initially, but eventually some combination of bad script (e.g., cheesy dialog or unbelievable scenario) and bad acting (all too common in Blacklist and The Following) would turn me sour. The Americans is the diamond in the rough. I just can't get re-interested.
Of course, some modern major network sitcoms have been outstanding. Modern Family is one of the best written and performed, extraordinarily clever and witty comedies ever. And it's American. Go figure. Parks and Recreation was also special.
Guilty pleasures? American Ninja Warrior
And perhaps my favorite TV show of all time: Law and Order. The original. All casts. Current? TWD and The Game of Thrones. Can't wait for the latter to start again in April!
There are many more and I've meandered off into new territory long enough. Just think if I got going on music ...
#115 - ON THE FEEDING OF SPIDERS
For over forty years I have fed little bugs to bigger bugs and rodents of all sorts to snakes and such. For geckos I used assorted arthropods and mollusks, but many are omnivorous (e.g., nectar feeders), which to leads to all sorts of concoctions of bee pollen, fruit mashes and other sticky messes. Believe me, I've used it all. I've gone through cycles of preferred prey items for my captives regardless of invertebrate or vertebrate; herbivorous, frugivorous, insectivorous, or carnivorous. Some prey item acquisition was interesting; as when I used to build termite traps in Nashville to feed my dart frogs. For those who don't know, using termites as dendrobatid food will allow the natural toxins to return to their skins. I've bred my own Zoophobas, Tenebrio, countless roach species and, of course, crickets. I've raised prey as small as D. melanogaster fruit flies and springtails to mega food like jumbo rats.
For feeding tarantulas I've always gone through phases. I've documented in many places my disgust with crickets and my allergy to them. After all, I am the author of "Crickets Suck". Yet over the decades I've always found myself returning to their use. On paper roaches are so much better, but in practical use they present their own problems, and when it comes to convenience the domestic cricket reigns supreme.
This morning a box arrived from Armstrong Crickets. Now that I am down to only 33 spiders, feeding has become a bit more problematic as I don't need a lot of prey. That makes bulk buying wasteful and raising food myself to be time and resources wasted. However, I am cool with the wastefulness of bulk buying as I can afford to splurge a bit. I weigh the cost of buying a box of 500 crickets for $18 and paying an equal amount for next day shipping (today's invoice was for $36.52) against the astronomical price of pet store crickets or the two hour round trip drive to our local little fleabag all animal show and the 30 minutes of browsing time spent. The All Animal Expo in Wheaton, IL requires 2 1/2 hours of time, a $5 entry fee and dealing with a crowded old fairgrounds hall where people sell everything from roosters to piglets to puppies to sugar gliders in addition to herps and arachnids. Fuck that. Sure I can pickup 1000 crickets for $15 ($20 if you include entry fee), but I'd rather shop the way I buy every single thing except for groceries. That is, on the Internet. (Truth be told, that last bit about groceries really just means fluids and the microwave Lean Cuisine dinners I eat because I don't really cook and frequent restaurants).
So, $36 bucks for 33 spiders it is. Once the weather is milder I'll be able to save a bit with two day shipping. At least half of the 500 crickets will be set free in my backyards. I like to watch the birds swoop in an pick some of them off. I simply cannot use 500 crickets. However, I am completely fine with spending $36 a month to feed the spiders. Fortunately, all of my spiders can be fed from one size – at least until I hatch something. Currently I order 2/3 grown. The smallest are immediately selected for the smallest spiders and I feed off as many as I can after I give them two days to gut load on the chow I offer. I give them my own homemade cricket gel (from polyacrylamide crystals I buy in bulk from watersorb.com - just add one 2 oz. condiment cup of crystals to one gallon of water and let sit overnight) for hydration, Fluker's cricket diet as their primary food and occasionally (actually, rarely) some thawed-frozen mixed veggies and dark greens. I clean the cricket's holding cage once a day without fail. One week from now the 2/3 grown crickets will begin to molt and become winged. At this point I will feed off as many males or females that have yet to display long ovipositors to the spiders again. I feed my spiders very heavy [as often as possible] for the first 7-10 days after receiving fresh crickets, and pick out smaller crickets for the spiders that need them. Once the spiders begin to chirp, mate, die off and otherwise disgust me, it's off to the ponds next to my house where I scatter them on the surrounding grasses. The birds, bullfrogs and toads are happy. I go two weeks or so without any crickets in my house. Smile.
So what about my days of breeding roaches and crickets? Simply put, it is unwarranted for 33 spiders. It's nice to every now and again be able to acquire some Blaberus sp. adults to feed my adult female Poecs and M. balfouri. My bro Apple has been helpful here. When he visited two weekends ago he brought me about a dozen big Blaberus. I have one adult female Poecilotheria rufilata that hasn't regained weight since she double-clutched and, over the course of four or five days, she ate about five herself. Thanks John! When I was away in Costa Rica, John was kind enough to bring some roaches by my house, but unfortunately they were Blaptica dubia. This species is shite unless you have bearded dragons or monitor lizards or similar. There is no mystery to why they are commonly called the Guyana burrowing roach. Unless you're into offering from forceps (I'm not!) or are fortunate enough to have a ravenous tarantula immediately pounce on one, a dubia tossed in the terrarium becomes a cohabitant. It probably won't harm the spider. It will burrow out of sight and scavenge on detritus. You will see them occasionally at night or after a misting. Rarely, if ever, will you see them between the chelicerae of their intended predator. As I've discovered the dubia Apple tossed in my tanks I've removed them and tried to get M. balfouri to eat them. If I find them live in their enclosures I will toss them on my next door neighbor's balcony. I'm not fond of them or the roaches.
Ordering 500 crickets for 33 spiders is a bit daft. But it is my interim solution. Long-term I want to further reduce my collection. Eventually I suppose I'll just buy a couple dozen crickets at a pet store like some n00b. Better still, I'll get down to zero and have no worries. I'll just have to keep buying parrot food as Jesse is going to outlive me.
Cheers, MJ
For feeding tarantulas I've always gone through phases. I've documented in many places my disgust with crickets and my allergy to them. After all, I am the author of "Crickets Suck". Yet over the decades I've always found myself returning to their use. On paper roaches are so much better, but in practical use they present their own problems, and when it comes to convenience the domestic cricket reigns supreme.
This morning a box arrived from Armstrong Crickets. Now that I am down to only 33 spiders, feeding has become a bit more problematic as I don't need a lot of prey. That makes bulk buying wasteful and raising food myself to be time and resources wasted. However, I am cool with the wastefulness of bulk buying as I can afford to splurge a bit. I weigh the cost of buying a box of 500 crickets for $18 and paying an equal amount for next day shipping (today's invoice was for $36.52) against the astronomical price of pet store crickets or the two hour round trip drive to our local little fleabag all animal show and the 30 minutes of browsing time spent. The All Animal Expo in Wheaton, IL requires 2 1/2 hours of time, a $5 entry fee and dealing with a crowded old fairgrounds hall where people sell everything from roosters to piglets to puppies to sugar gliders in addition to herps and arachnids. Fuck that. Sure I can pickup 1000 crickets for $15 ($20 if you include entry fee), but I'd rather shop the way I buy every single thing except for groceries. That is, on the Internet. (Truth be told, that last bit about groceries really just means fluids and the microwave Lean Cuisine dinners I eat because I don't really cook and frequent restaurants).
So, $36 bucks for 33 spiders it is. Once the weather is milder I'll be able to save a bit with two day shipping. At least half of the 500 crickets will be set free in my backyards. I like to watch the birds swoop in an pick some of them off. I simply cannot use 500 crickets. However, I am completely fine with spending $36 a month to feed the spiders. Fortunately, all of my spiders can be fed from one size – at least until I hatch something. Currently I order 2/3 grown. The smallest are immediately selected for the smallest spiders and I feed off as many as I can after I give them two days to gut load on the chow I offer. I give them my own homemade cricket gel (from polyacrylamide crystals I buy in bulk from watersorb.com - just add one 2 oz. condiment cup of crystals to one gallon of water and let sit overnight) for hydration, Fluker's cricket diet as their primary food and occasionally (actually, rarely) some thawed-frozen mixed veggies and dark greens. I clean the cricket's holding cage once a day without fail. One week from now the 2/3 grown crickets will begin to molt and become winged. At this point I will feed off as many males or females that have yet to display long ovipositors to the spiders again. I feed my spiders very heavy [as often as possible] for the first 7-10 days after receiving fresh crickets, and pick out smaller crickets for the spiders that need them. Once the spiders begin to chirp, mate, die off and otherwise disgust me, it's off to the ponds next to my house where I scatter them on the surrounding grasses. The birds, bullfrogs and toads are happy. I go two weeks or so without any crickets in my house. Smile.
So what about my days of breeding roaches and crickets? Simply put, it is unwarranted for 33 spiders. It's nice to every now and again be able to acquire some Blaberus sp. adults to feed my adult female Poecs and M. balfouri. My bro Apple has been helpful here. When he visited two weekends ago he brought me about a dozen big Blaberus. I have one adult female Poecilotheria rufilata that hasn't regained weight since she double-clutched and, over the course of four or five days, she ate about five herself. Thanks John! When I was away in Costa Rica, John was kind enough to bring some roaches by my house, but unfortunately they were Blaptica dubia. This species is shite unless you have bearded dragons or monitor lizards or similar. There is no mystery to why they are commonly called the Guyana burrowing roach. Unless you're into offering from forceps (I'm not!) or are fortunate enough to have a ravenous tarantula immediately pounce on one, a dubia tossed in the terrarium becomes a cohabitant. It probably won't harm the spider. It will burrow out of sight and scavenge on detritus. You will see them occasionally at night or after a misting. Rarely, if ever, will you see them between the chelicerae of their intended predator. As I've discovered the dubia Apple tossed in my tanks I've removed them and tried to get M. balfouri to eat them. If I find them live in their enclosures I will toss them on my next door neighbor's balcony. I'm not fond of them or the roaches.
Ordering 500 crickets for 33 spiders is a bit daft. But it is my interim solution. Long-term I want to further reduce my collection. Eventually I suppose I'll just buy a couple dozen crickets at a pet store like some n00b. Better still, I'll get down to zero and have no worries. I'll just have to keep buying parrot food as Jesse is going to outlive me.
Cheers, MJ
Tuesday, March 29, 2016
#114 - RANDOM SHITE
Been about 11 days so I figured I'd at least write something today, even if, topically, it may spray about like an unneutered male alley cat.
The big news is that the first issue of the Journal of the British Tarantula Society [31(1)] with me as its sole editor and designer has hit mailboxes around the world, including those in America. At the same time, I released BTS Newsletter 1, and it was made available for member download.
I actually caved on my principles and asked Mark Pennell to once again make me an Admin of the BTS Facebook Group and Official Page so that I could post announcements of the print journal arrival, and the fact that both the Interactive PDF web version and the premier newsletter (in the same format) were available for download.
Obviously, in order to be a Faffbook Admin I needed to have an account. Well, the weekend before this past, Chad Campbell outed me on FriendFace by letting it be known that I have created what is now my 4th incarnation on FB. I've noted elsewhere that I had done so, but it was mostly overlooked. The sole purpose of creating a fourth page for myself was to create a business page for Triggercontrol Tactical and I tried to be stealthy. I'm not accepting friends for the most part. It's not for that. I won't use my page or follow a news feed. And, just because I'm a BTS FB Admin again, does not mean that I will be moderating those pages or posting personal things there (e.g., all the photos I used to post there). I will only make posts related to my committee responsibilities: the publications, first and foremost, and then the events, membership, etc.
Ironically, when Chad stayed with me 10 days ago, I finally talked him into using my preferred social media - Instagram. Give Chad a follow @phormingochilus. Of course, I hope you're following at least my @exoticfauna (if not also my @dailyhandgun and @triggercontroltactical). If mine and Chad's pretty pix don't satiate you (I realize mine are all over the spectrum), give Jason Newland a follow @newlander85.
One of the many humorous occurrences during Chad's two-night stay in my home was when he and I began to put away the beer and decided to harass Tom Patterson. He was out at a concert or something and unreachable. So Chad then dialed the Scher's. For those of you don't know, Scott & Debby Scher are the owners of Arachnoboards. They are old friends of mine and the three of us did a lot of the organization together for their ArachnoCons in 2006 and 2007. Chad's never met them in person, but of course he works with them as a moderator for Arachnoboards. Debby made the mistake of answering the phone. They live in NYC and it was about 2 a.m. there. Unlike single gypsies like Chad and I, Scott and Debby have a family including two kids. The call started awkwardly, but eventually we got to exchange some laughs, some of which did come at the expense of Tom. (He knows what I'm talking about; we'll leave it an inside joke).
Speaking of Arachnoboards, I also have stated that I am just as much done with it as I am with Faffbook. To be fair, although I've been a member for 13 years, all I've used it for over the past 9 or so is to post advertisements, occasional photos and announcements of updates to my Tarantula Bibliography. I was just discussing with Chad whether I would keep updating TTB and keep it alive. Don't worry. I can't see giving it up just yet. And, as far as AB, I just posted an advertisement there a little while ago. What? An ad? Don't worry - I'm not selling spiders ;). I mentioned in a previous blog entry that I brought back some BTS T-shirts during my Lectures visit. I mostly have Ladies Cut shirts available, and I posted an ad on AB to sell them. Click on the preceding link if you're interested.
So, what else is new? Well, after Chad's visit I am happy to report that I am now down to 34 tarantulas! Getting closer to ZERO all the time ... It's a nice little group now. My spider room has become my office. My office just happens to have two four foot black wire shelving units of tarantula enclosures along one wall and a breeding arena. Nothing fancy. No thousands upon thousands to feed. Here it is:
Speaking of office terrariums ... maybe a snake for my new TCT office ... Hmm ...
Over the past three decades plus, I've had many frantic dancing around the topic conversations with landlords. Whether looking to lease commercial or residential space, I was always finding myself shocking a realtor or property owner by saying, "well, um, I, um, kinda have a, sorta, pet business", "Oh really? Is it live animals or just supplies?" "well, um, I guess, you might, um, call them live exotic animals" "What are we talking about here?" "Well, I breed snakes, geckos and tarantulas and raise roaches and beetle larvae and small rodents to feed them!"
I can't tell you how many times I've had that conversation or a much less honest, indirect white lie version of it. As they say, it's easier to ask forgiveness than permission.
I've also experienced the top secret, smuggled in during the night, don't let the neighbors see scenarios. Very often those lead to the "oh, fuck. It's time for routine roach and ant spraying at the apartments". I can tell you from experience that this situation may require some under the cover of darkness in the wee hours of the morning panic or full blown anxiety attacks as you try to stash 100 terrariums into a friend's place.
So, after many years of smuggling animals into apartments, and looking for business space just for the enjoyment of shocking questioning lessors, I now am doing the same thing. "So, you're not one of those "exotic animal" breeders who wants to bring snakes, spiders and roaches onto my property, are ya?" "Um, well, um, no, sir, I'm, well, I used to be like that, but now I'm, kinda, sorta in need of classroom space to teach civilians how to defend themselves with handguns and get them qualified to be able to hide a weapon on their person at all times". Fart in church. Yeah, I've always been you're traditional sorta guy.
Well, anyway, just wanted to say hello. Also wanted to let you know that I've advertised what I have left in BTS T-shirts on AB and the brand new BTS Journal and Newsletter are available to BTS members. Drop me a comment below and let me know you're still reading. Ask a question. Any question? I don't censor and never lie. It will keep this conversation going.
All the best, M
The big news is that the first issue of the Journal of the British Tarantula Society [31(1)] with me as its sole editor and designer has hit mailboxes around the world, including those in America. At the same time, I released BTS Newsletter 1, and it was made available for member download.
I actually caved on my principles and asked Mark Pennell to once again make me an Admin of the BTS Facebook Group and Official Page so that I could post announcements of the print journal arrival, and the fact that both the Interactive PDF web version and the premier newsletter (in the same format) were available for download.
Obviously, in order to be a Faffbook Admin I needed to have an account. Well, the weekend before this past, Chad Campbell outed me on FriendFace by letting it be known that I have created what is now my 4th incarnation on FB. I've noted elsewhere that I had done so, but it was mostly overlooked. The sole purpose of creating a fourth page for myself was to create a business page for Triggercontrol Tactical and I tried to be stealthy. I'm not accepting friends for the most part. It's not for that. I won't use my page or follow a news feed. And, just because I'm a BTS FB Admin again, does not mean that I will be moderating those pages or posting personal things there (e.g., all the photos I used to post there). I will only make posts related to my committee responsibilities: the publications, first and foremost, and then the events, membership, etc.
Ironically, when Chad stayed with me 10 days ago, I finally talked him into using my preferred social media - Instagram. Give Chad a follow @phormingochilus. Of course, I hope you're following at least my @exoticfauna (if not also my @dailyhandgun and @triggercontroltactical). If mine and Chad's pretty pix don't satiate you (I realize mine are all over the spectrum), give Jason Newland a follow @newlander85.
One of the many humorous occurrences during Chad's two-night stay in my home was when he and I began to put away the beer and decided to harass Tom Patterson. He was out at a concert or something and unreachable. So Chad then dialed the Scher's. For those of you don't know, Scott & Debby Scher are the owners of Arachnoboards. They are old friends of mine and the three of us did a lot of the organization together for their ArachnoCons in 2006 and 2007. Chad's never met them in person, but of course he works with them as a moderator for Arachnoboards. Debby made the mistake of answering the phone. They live in NYC and it was about 2 a.m. there. Unlike single gypsies like Chad and I, Scott and Debby have a family including two kids. The call started awkwardly, but eventually we got to exchange some laughs, some of which did come at the expense of Tom. (He knows what I'm talking about; we'll leave it an inside joke).
Speaking of Arachnoboards, I also have stated that I am just as much done with it as I am with Faffbook. To be fair, although I've been a member for 13 years, all I've used it for over the past 9 or so is to post advertisements, occasional photos and announcements of updates to my Tarantula Bibliography. I was just discussing with Chad whether I would keep updating TTB and keep it alive. Don't worry. I can't see giving it up just yet. And, as far as AB, I just posted an advertisement there a little while ago. What? An ad? Don't worry - I'm not selling spiders ;). I mentioned in a previous blog entry that I brought back some BTS T-shirts during my Lectures visit. I mostly have Ladies Cut shirts available, and I posted an ad on AB to sell them. Click on the preceding link if you're interested.
So, what else is new? Well, after Chad's visit I am happy to report that I am now down to 34 tarantulas! Getting closer to ZERO all the time ... It's a nice little group now. My spider room has become my office. My office just happens to have two four foot black wire shelving units of tarantula enclosures along one wall and a breeding arena. Nothing fancy. No thousands upon thousands to feed. Here it is:
Speaking of office terrariums ... maybe a snake for my new TCT office ... Hmm ...
Over the past three decades plus, I've had many frantic dancing around the topic conversations with landlords. Whether looking to lease commercial or residential space, I was always finding myself shocking a realtor or property owner by saying, "well, um, I, um, kinda have a, sorta, pet business", "Oh really? Is it live animals or just supplies?" "well, um, I guess, you might, um, call them live exotic animals" "What are we talking about here?" "Well, I breed snakes, geckos and tarantulas and raise roaches and beetle larvae and small rodents to feed them!"
I can't tell you how many times I've had that conversation or a much less honest, indirect white lie version of it. As they say, it's easier to ask forgiveness than permission.
I've also experienced the top secret, smuggled in during the night, don't let the neighbors see scenarios. Very often those lead to the "oh, fuck. It's time for routine roach and ant spraying at the apartments". I can tell you from experience that this situation may require some under the cover of darkness in the wee hours of the morning panic or full blown anxiety attacks as you try to stash 100 terrariums into a friend's place.
So, after many years of smuggling animals into apartments, and looking for business space just for the enjoyment of shocking questioning lessors, I now am doing the same thing. "So, you're not one of those "exotic animal" breeders who wants to bring snakes, spiders and roaches onto my property, are ya?" "Um, well, um, no, sir, I'm, well, I used to be like that, but now I'm, kinda, sorta in need of classroom space to teach civilians how to defend themselves with handguns and get them qualified to be able to hide a weapon on their person at all times". Fart in church. Yeah, I've always been you're traditional sorta guy.
Well, anyway, just wanted to say hello. Also wanted to let you know that I've advertised what I have left in BTS T-shirts on AB and the brand new BTS Journal and Newsletter are available to BTS members. Drop me a comment below and let me know you're still reading. Ask a question. Any question? I don't censor and never lie. It will keep this conversation going.
All the best, M
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