What You Don't Know

Get a load of the spider I found on the lamp at my piano. When I sit down to play, I thoughtlessly reach inside the shade to turn on the light, and then reach in again to turn it off when I'm finished. It doesn't occur to me that I should look in there first because there might be a spider spinning a web that could snare a rabbit. It doesn't occur to me that an eight-legged creature might look at my lamp shade and think it would make the perfect spot to lay enough eggs to furnish the planet with spiders for ages.

I don't know how long the spider was living there or how many times I had unknowingly placed my hand just inches from a thing that frightens me more than other living thing on the planet. On one hand, I think no harm done. On the other hand, now I can't turn on the lamp without stooping down awkwardly and craning my neck so I can see up inside the lamp shade before turning on the lamp. And when I play the piano, I occasionally glance up at the shade to make sure there is nothing crawling around on it, nothing making a nest where it shouldn't.

I think of the phrase "what you don't know won't hurt you." You're afraid of spiders, and having a big one so close to you would cause pandimonium, triggering a chain of events often unseen in the average household. For example, if you're playing the piano, and a larger-than-necessary spider appears, you're likely to jump up and run away, tripping on the piano leg, which jars the piano and knocks the lid down with such force the nearby music stand begins to wobble and teeter until it falls down flat on the floor, causing such a startling noise, the cat is frightened and runs as quickly as he can, scratching the floor with all of his sharp claws, leaving gauges that must be sanded by a professional, and in his haste, the poor guy knocks over every book on the bookshelf, and well...the domino effect would just keep going and going. But if you don't know the larger-than-necessary spider is there, all is well.

But the phrase "what you don't know won't hurt you" is a flawed and unhelpful quip. Even if you aren't aware of a specific threat, you are generally aware threats exists. Even if you don't know there is a giant spider too close for comfort, you know they exist in the world and aren't concerned with your personal space requirements. I may not have known about that hideous spider initially, but I know about it now, and I believe I have been hurt. I am considering removing the shade all together and playing by the light of the bare bulb. Crawl on that, you bastard.