White Spider

Sometimes when I am in the garden, I like to take my gloves off so I can feel the dirt in my hands. I am kind of funny that way. Because it's not enough for me to just smell that rich earth and see how beautiful and fertile it is, I have to feel the moisture and the grit and the fluffiness of it. I have to smell it on my hands even after I wash them and I want to get in the dirt enough that I have to dig it out from under my fingernails.

It's a sickness really.

But, it is also easier to plant seeds with bare hands vs. gloved. It's kind of hard to evenly distribute when your fingers feel like stay puffed marshmallows. So today, as I was planting my seeds, (tomatoes, peppers, peas, basil, dill, okra, chives and black beans so far) I took off my gloves to really feel the soil. It was calling to me.

At one point though, I dug into an herb pot next to my raised beds and out popped this friend.
I am not sure what he/she is exactly, though in doing a quick bit of research I think it might be either a jumping spider or some sort of orb weaver. I am so glad it was polite enough to not jump at me as I finished my work in the box. If it is a barn spider (orb weaver), perhaps her name is Charlotte?

Thankfully I was digging with a small shovel, not my bare hand.

Until,
D :)

This Just In: My husband just informed me it is indeed a female jumping spider. And, he thinks she's cute. More on that some other day... ;-)