I'm becoming Ant Woman (anti-ant, that is)

What you can't see: lines and lines of ants

I turn on the kitchen light to get a cup of tea and find marching formations on the sink and counters. We try to keep everything spick and span but still the ants march on.

"There are so many ants! No matter what I try, there seem to be dozens. How do you get rid of them?"

I turn on the kitchen light to get a cup of tea and find marching formations on the sink and counters. We try to keep everything spick and span but still the ants march on.

"Of course," smiles my Indonesian friend. "When the rain comes, the ants come indoors." She can't imagine that we don't share our house with them in Seattle.

I should have caught the pattern. Rain = more ants in the house. But I don't like ants any better for seeking shelter with us!

Right now, a light brown variety has invaded cupboards and counters. We cover everything and refrigerate what we can - but they're still on the move. Ants climb our arms when we reach through it to unlock the gate. They're making their way across the driveway from the garden to the house wall - we spray regularly to prevent them from making it to the laundry roof. More ants. 

An internet picture of what creeps me out in the shower:
ants eating a roach

Pick up a potted plant and ants (carrying white nymphs and egg cases) run from every drain hole. There are sugar ants so small they're only seen when they move. Big ants that come in from the garden. Black ants that carry away crumbs of anything we missed. Ants that eat wood trim and beams. Ants that swarm cockroaches that are unlucky enough to land on their backs. "Eat 'em alive and drag the parts home," seems to be the rallying cry of that species.

One night a few weeks ago, I found a regular line of ants and traced them back to a door frame in the guest bathroom. I took out the toxic bug spray and shot it at the wood. OH OH OH - out pour hundreds and hundreds of black ants. They writhe on the floor, flee a few feet along the wall, and ... dead. We sweep up what is left of them the next day. That line has re-formed yesterday and so I spray again.

I open the kitchen cabinet - and there's another line. They freeze as the light hits them and then they march on. I pour boiling water over as many as I can, wipe it all up, and toss the mess in the garbage.

However, they're not all nuisance. Ants fertilize our trees, dispose of insect waste (eat it), and apparently are good for other things. 

Remember the proverb about learning from their diligence and persistence: "Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!" (Proverbs 6:6)? We see that every day.