Yes. It is Sid. I have determined his gender by his behavior. He can never find anything without help from someone else - two buddies, Sam and Saul, have moved in with him - and they take turns helping him look for prey and moving stuff around. . He also depends a lot on others for his sustenance, his laundry piles up and he stares longingly into our home. I presume he is looking for a TV screen. Sid now also has a girlfriend, Sally, who lives on the adjoining window. She is a busy little lady and hardly ever stays still, unlike Sid and his buddies who actually do a lot of sitting around. Sally occasionally hops over to Sid's window. I am picturing a nice macaroni and fly casserole under one of her legs to feed the boys at half-time. Occasionally both Sid and Sally disappear from the windows for hours at a time- hmmmm? I haven't seen any baby spiders yet, but time will tell.
Like many Americans who have lost their homes, Sid and friends and Sally both had their almost 4 foot diameter webs destroyed. Not by a sub prime lender or a real estate scam, but by our window washers. I had meant to put an SOS sign in my window warning the washers away, but I was a day late and they came while I was out running errands. I shed a few tears and went about my business. The next morning they were all back. Yes, I know it is them - because I recognize them now. There is no truth to the myth that all spiders look alike. After you've lived with them a few months - they develop unique personality traits and habits. It has only been a week, but the webs are shaping up nicely - only about 2 feet in diameter. Maybe if Sid has a couple more buddies move in and Sally has some little ones, they'll get those webs back up to speed. And maybe next time, I'll remember to warn the window washers.
Talk about survivors!
Okay , I confess.the photo on the right was taken from the Internet - my camera has some limitations and the sunlight is too bright (thank you, God) but the spiders and the webs on my windows are for real. Two of my daughters are witnesses to that.