Hmmmm..your first description makes me think of a crane fly, but those don't bite.

Did your hand swell?

P.S. Chubbles,
I looked up Crane fly and it did look alot like that, but didn't have as long of legs as the picture. I forgot I had an insect book, but couldn't find this insect in it.

Congratulations, Cathy!
Sounds like you made the same casual mistake I made and tried to carry an ichneumon wasp in your hands to safety.
One kind in particular, I discovered too late, very closely resembles a cranefly at first glance. I had one bopping around the living room one night and decided to take that "cranefly" and put it back outside where it belonged. I got about three steps and she let me have it! I'm more careful about what's around the porch light when I open the door now, and also what I'm shooing and how I shoo it!
Also had one of these hatch out of a silk moth cocoon, but it was much larger than the one I mistook for the fly. Was expecting a large moth and then one day all of a sudden I kept smelling this sickeningly sweet smell around my indoor tree where the cocoon was. It bothered me enough that I finally got to poking around trying to locate its source. Saw the wasp perched quietly on a limb, got suspicious, and sure enough found an exit hole chewed in the cocoon. This kind is a common parasite of giant silk moths!

Yes Dirtgirl! That's what it was! I looked up some images on the Internet, and sure enough! I can't believe I did that!! So I guess I got stung and not bit.
I thought ichneumon wasps were dark brown/black, but I see that some of them are light brown.......like the one that stung me. Mystery solved! Boy was I stupid!! You're so smart Dirtgirl. Thanks for your help.

Ouch.

Glad you're OK.

Cathy, you goober!! Don't be silly--you are SO FAR FROM STUPID. Remember, the only way I know this info at all is because I did the very same thing, got myself stung, and then just had to find out what that thing was if it wasn't a cranefly!
Isn't it wonderful, the process of learning by doing? Well, maybe as long as it's not killer bees or mambas....

lol Dirtgirl.........."killer bees or mambas".
(After doing an internet search, I finally realized that you weren't talking about a latin dance step). haha

Nope, we're talking about the snake here, tho I'll bet you were certainly doing some high-steppin' when that "cranefly" let you have it!

Dirtgirl, are your ichneumon wasps light brown or are they darker?

I can't believe anyone tries to get bugs out of the house in their bare hands...lol. I have a very healthy dislike of touching bugs. I get a paper cup and cover it on a wall, then slide a piece of cardboard under it and cart it to the door. Otherwise, I would never get bugs out of the house. [g]

Adam

Hi Adam,
I have had so many bugs in my house that don't bite or sting, like leaf-footed bugs and others, that I've learned to "dissociate" my hand from my head and grab them and run to the door. I still laugh when I think of grabbing that wasp, not know what it was! We do have a "bug jar", which we use for spiders, wasps, etc.

Cathy, the one that stung me was a very light tan, almost a reddish tan, very cranefly like but those antennae should have been a dead giveaway.
The one that came out of the cocoon was much more reddish-hued and it would have been hard to mistake it for anything but a wasp.
Now once in a great while I am treated to a real experience...a giant ichneumon. These get to be close to three inches long and are shiny black with a bit of yellow, but they are most amazing to watch when you find one laying eggs. I have seen the females before with their ovipositor so deep in a tree that you think they have to be stuck there. I am sure if these can sting but I do not want to find out. Guess I could always try to carry one out of the house!

Yes they do sting, not like he bee and attack you. A Crane fly went down my shirt any and stung me about three Times. I got stung by a wasp and that's just how it felt. Don't believe me put one down your shirt.

Not sure there was one on my fridge yesterday and today also never got close to us

Most often they say that crane flies do not bite. Four of them entered my house attracted to light. I was very concerned because I have a 2yr old. They were hiding and left the bathroom light ON so we r not disturbed by them. I shoo them away in the morning except one has stayed back. My daughter was watching a cartoon on laptop when this fly was attracted to its light. I did not check on my child. But she screamed and cried and she said that something bite her. I quickly switched ON the light and was surprised that it has bitten her. I had no choice but to kill it as it kept on escaping and hiding, coming out when we r relaxed. I hate anything bothering my child