Looks like I will never get that friend.  Unless they have eight  hairy legs, that is. 

Seems the only friends I have are my three tarantulas.  I keep them in a clear, glass cage in my bedroom; I talk to them as I would my parents.  I tell them everything (my spiders, not my parents).  (I could talk to my parents, but they think I am weird, so I don't even bother.  I, more or less, keep to myself.  And my spiders.)

My spiders are very good listeners.  After talking to them, I always feel better.

My name is Uriah.  Uriah Daniel Quigley.  Some name, hunh?  Fits me to a T:  not much to look at.  Tall, gangly frame.  Skinny as a pole.  Wildly curly dark-brown hair that looks like a bomb went off in my mouth.  Thick Coke-bottle lensed glasses that make my eyes look like bug eyes.  A big honker (got that from my dad's side of the family).  Big buck teeth that stick out a mile. 

Let's face it:  I will never win any male beauty contest or be picked for homecoming king, not with this face of mine!!

I'm the poster boy of geekdom!

I am one of those who struggle in school.  Reading.  Math.  History.  Science (unless it's about bugs or spiders, that is!).  Governmental Studies.  French.  All cause me nothing but headaches (not to mention dyspepsia, ulcers, and nausea).  The only class I'm good at is writing (English Composition).  And Science, when it's about spiders.

I can tell you about the mating cycle of arachnids, as well as why they have so many eyes and legs, the gestation period, what their diet consists of, why not to annoy them, and so forth.  I have always loved spiders, which freaks a lot of people out; but they aren't really that bad.  Spiders, as a whole, are quite fascinating.  I have always enjoyed spiders.  Poisonous or not, big, small, multi-colored or any shade of black, brown, or grey:  to me, all spiders are beautiful.

I have three Mexican red-knee tarantulas.  A male, two female.  I named them "Web-ster" (get it??), "Octavia", and "Chief Many Eyes".  They are quite gentle; I make sure that anyone who wants to see them be the same, or else they could get bitten, and possibly get sick.  Spiders are nothing to mess with; all spiders, even the teeny tiny ones, are poisonous to a degree (just some are much more than others, like, for example, the black widow, Australian funnel web, brown recluse ["fiddle-back"], to name a few). 

Spiders are smart.  They know how to get out of a jam, and they are excellent predators.  They are quite intelligent creatures, and they have a good place on this earth; God made them, put them here for a reason. 

Unfortunately, my love for spiders doesn't leave me as a candidate for future dates (or friendships).  I tend to drive people away, especially when I take my three "babies" for a walk or let them crawl all over me.  Girls have fainted, and some guys have run off, screaming into the night, whenever I (or my pets) appear on the scene.  I can't help it; my spiders need socialization or a change of scenery some time!

My parents think my pets are disgusting.  They are always threatening to get rid of them.  I tell them no; I paid for them with my very own money, and I take excellent care of them.  I get them their food, allow them to get their daily exercise, and never make them mad.  I always try to be as loving to my spiderish friends as I would a mother to her kids.  (Okay, a father.  I'm not a girl!  LOL)

I don't know why people can't learn to appreciate the beauty of arachnids.  I think they are wonderful; the earth would certainly be a much sadder place without them!

Well, I have homework to do, so I am going to put my "kids" back in their home, and start hitting the books before suppertime.  I will write in here again; until later, this is Uriah Quigley signing off!  Take care! 

~Uriah ("Spider-Boy").  :)