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For the past month, I’ve had a constant passenger in my car.

Well, not exactly in my car, but on my car.

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There, strung between the side view mirror and the driver’s side door handle, a garden variety spider has taken up residence. Each time I get in the car I check to make sure the little orange dot is there. Surprisingly, it is. I’ve noticed that, when I start the car, the spider takes refuge in the cavity behind the side view mirror. The spider has gone on several extended trips with me, some at highway speeds.

For a while, I thought the spider had decamped for better hunting grounds as the web appeared empty. But she’s still there, probably starving, but still there. The web doesn’t seem productive and now resembles a rag-tag hammock more than the orb web it started out as. I’d have thought that speed would have dislodged her; that, or better spidey-sense.

All month long, I’ve been marvelling at the staying power of this flimsy construct. All month long I’ve been pondering how it is that a pair of pantyhose can expire in the process of donning them, but this little arachnid can build a wispy edifice capable of withstanding weeks of my erratic driving habits? All of this web-wondering got me thinking about a news story I’d read years ago. Apparently, the secrets of the web were about to have human applications. So, just how was all that coming along, anyway?