Tiny creature, ~2mm, multi-legged but I didn’t count (probably had a magnifying glass somewhere, but didn’t care). It was imbedded in ear wax; whether as a result of my swabbing inside my ear canal with a Q-tip or on its own, couldn’t tell you. 30-something, living solo at the time, so nobody to go looking in my ears for other visitors. No notable neurotic impact.

Okay, I closely examine every Q-tip that comes out of my ear, but everybody does that, right?