The story that will be told is that I didn’t panic

Noel has said that I don’t tell enough embarrassing stories of my own, so here goes.

Yesterday we enjoyed dinner at the home of Noel’s extended family in Kaneohe. The kids were busy and were easy to get to sleep once we were home. I’m wrapping up things, getting Robbie’s backpack ready for the morning and locking up, etc. before heading to bed. For my last stop, I’m using the bathroom downstairs when I notice this creature less than a foot away to my right! I’m in a bit of a bind because I am still sitting down (and barefoot, no shoes around in the bathroom) and those things move FAST! I don’t shriek loudly, but I manage enough sound a few times to summon Noel upstairs. He comes down to find me running through the kitchen with my pants above my knees.

We have these visitors in the house every couple of months and we both have our own way of getting them to leave. I go to grab the broom – my method is to open the door wide and sweep it out with one big hockey slap shot motion. Noel likes to take a pair of long pliers, grab the thing in the middle, and calmly (more or less) walk it outside to stomp on it. Noel went searching for the pliers, which was my signal that he was going to take care of it this time, so I took the picture above. Note he was stuck here for a bit – I think my hair thwarted him for a brief moment! And for those wondering just how big is he?? The doorframe is 2.5 inches wide, so he’s a good 5 inches long. You'd never guess, but his legs are a freaky red color, too. Needless to say, it took me a few minutes to calm down.