Nasal assault

So, rose42dance and I looked at an apartment today that was very spiffy--more spacious than any 2-bedroom we've yet encountered--and in a pretty good location as well. Only three problems: 1) no enclosed parking, which in Oakland could be a bad thing not to have; 2) the building's old, hence the electrical outlets are few, are all two-pronged, and I imagine there might be issues with the plumbing as well; and 3) the building, particularly the hallway on the way to this apartment, smells VERY STRONGLY of greasy Asian cooking. It's been several hours, I've had dinner since, and I keep fancying I can still smell it.

I don't think this bodes well for the possibility of living there comfortably.

*resolves to look at yet another batch of places*

A sixteen-legged mystery

The spider I mentioned a few days ago spent those few days continuing to brood over its cannibalistic little bundle, not moving (as far as I could tell) except to shift position slightly. But today, when I glanced up there shortly after waking, the bundle (which had not previously shown much if any reduction in size) was completely gone, and furthermore there was another, slightly smaller daddy-long-legs suspended a couple inches above the original one. They are currently facing each other and making occasional stroking or prodding motions in each other's direction with their front couple of legs; they're close enough to touch if they both reached out at the same time, but so far they don't seem to have done so. I really wish I knew what they were up to. At first I wondered if there were perhaps some sort of territory challenge going on, but now it occurs to me that "mating ritual" might be more accurate. That might also explain where the bundle o' dead spider disappeared to, although it's a mind-bender to think of critters that, er, primitive taking that much trouble over courtship gifts.

Ah, hell, perhaps I'm over-anthropomorphizing. I just wish I knew a better explanation. If they are mating, I just hope they don't decide to produce their babies right where they are now--i.e. directly above my bed. But I fear they've got no reason to do it elsewhere.