Do Spiders Feel Fear?

This morning I drove 2/3 of the way to work with this guy on my windshield.

My initial feelings were "Ew, gross." Why didn't I destroy him with the windshield wipers? I don't know. Maybe I was worried it would smear spider guts all over the place. Maybe I just don't like squishing things. Maybe I started having crazy thoughts like, "Do spiders feel fear? How would we know? Can you analyze a spider brain for that? Do spiders shake in trepidation?" 

This is the same part of me that in kindergarten worried that my pencil had feelings and didn't like being sharpened all the time. I blame Disney and animated movies. 

As the wind rushed past him, he curled his little legs in tight to his body to protect himself. At stoplights, he would slowly unwind and step towards one direction, then scamper back in the other, confused. I cheered him on: "Come on, Spider! Get to cover under the windshield wiper before the wind comes again!" Nope. 

I started cursing him. Stupid spider. Don't you know how to take care of yourself? 

"Of course he doesn't," you're saying. "He's a spider." I know. 

He lasted much longer than I expected him to. Gradually his little legs started waving one-by-one in the wind, and then -- whoosh -- he flew over the top of the car, carried away on the wind down 465. I felt a little sad. Yeah, he was gross, and if he touched me I would have flicked him away so fast. But all he was doing was minding his spider business, chillin' on my car, not knowing he was about to meet his doom.