Ants @ MindSay

One day several weeks ago, I was watching a tiny little ant with curiousity. In typical ant fashion, it was going first in one direction, and then in another. The longer I watched it, I could put off some of my routine chores! About seven minutes had passed, and I thought I had better do something to get the little guy out of the house, (in the past, many an ant had I hoped, found it's way to the beach, when I felt that I had no choice, but to 'wash it down the sink) but alas, I had waited to long, and now I had somehow become 'a bit protective' of this little ant. It was obviously 'a scout' ant... that is, one of the 'first' ants to be sent out, to report back to the rest of the group, if there is safety and food. I wondered 'what would happen' if I 'blew hard upon it, making a 'ferocious' sound, at the same time. Would it 'scare it enough' to report back to the others: Don't go there? I tried it! At first, for some reason, it seemed unphased! I blew harder, and sent it sailing about a foot, to the other side of the sink! Now you could see that it was definitely beginning to take notice. I blew upon it again, adding a 'more ferocious' sound to my exhale! NOW, I had 'really gotten it's attention! In fact, the poor thing looked 'scared silly,' not knowing 'what direction to go in, but 'determined to find it's way back to the others, I watched as it made it's way under a portion of the sink, and out of sight! It never returned! Nor did it's followers! I continue to use this new technique each time I see a 'new scout ant. It will even work on a 'small cluster' of ants! Sometime it will take a 'little patience' but it 'actually works! So far, I have 'kept them at bay, and we are in the 'middle of August! If you wake up to a hundred or more ants, I am not 'sure' if this technique will work, but most likely it will, only it might take a lot longer! It also helps greatly to 'clean off your countertops of any food residue. Since I 'threw out my toaster oven, I notice that I rarely see any ants in my kitchen!

An ant problem that is. I have currently been under invasion from ants this past month. Yes, I know that myself and, well, mostly, the other inhabitants of this apartment are to blame. However, acording to our landlord, such a thing couldn't occur because the building is built of cement, and no insects could get in, unless we opened the windows and took the screens out. Well, the screens have been in, cement is indeed the main matirial in the building, but you tell that to not only the ants, but the spiders, house centepides, and various other little creepy crawly things that I can't identify. For the most part, the spiders and centepides ect. haven't been a problem, but with ants coming in, along do more of the above said follow. I think I see two places where they are entering, right under the sink, and the front door. They didn't even knock! Anyway, with the bunny here, we are at limits as to what to do, at the moment, I just put down some black pepper. I'll give that a little bit, so much for washing the floors.

Steve is at his parents house this weekend, helping his father put up some fence that the cows got through. Hey DrunkenOso, got any good steak recipies? PS, we are still pondering every once in a while about that bunny recipe. :) Its just so hard when every time you start to think about how tasty it would be she comes up and starts giving you kisses. While he is down there, I opted to stay here and clean, clean, homework. Downtown is celebrating halloween on Satruday, Steve will be coming up for that, hopefully I have the place pretty good before he gets here. I'm going as a china doll. I bought a dress a while back from Chinatown, and I'm going to paint myself white, and literally be a doll. I tell people "china doll" and they imidiatly go, "Oh, your going to be a geisha, lots of people are doing that!" Noooot quite.

I should start cleaning some more, I have a lot to do, before I even start on homework! I'll have to write later about schooling, some of what I'm doing is really cool, the rest of it........ well....... not so much.

Top ten artists how I see them.

 

Dead Kennedys: What more can you say?

 

 

D.I.: Classic California Punk in a modern day context

 

 

Hub City Stompers: "Got a shiny silver keg and it's as big as a whale and it's full of bass ale! Some Sorority girls, yeah, I count about 20! So come on and don't bring any beer Money!

Well 5:00 and the weekends in sight. But what's to do on a thursday night? 16 skins and a broken down car"

Best Ska/Oi!/ Skinhead band ever

 

 

Adam and the Ants: Beat my Guest

 

 

Tom Lehrer: I just love those effectual little diddies he does.

 

 

TSOL:CODE BLUE!

 

 

Adolescents: "We are scientist in our lair, looking through the microscope.

 

 

The Business: Working class! Oi Oi Oi!

 

 

Vandals: Got a problem? Lose a girlfriend? Just tell them all she's dead... or stalk her.

 

 

Mustard Plug: I like "Gum" "Throw a bomb" and their rendition of "The Freshman" is just plain sad

we have  a few little bedtime rituals here. For him it involves doing his teeth which takes a long time because the right music must be selected before beginning. My husband has three Bose Wave radios ( no we don't work for them) one in the kitchen, one in the master bath and one in our bedroom. I like the snooze feature; he likes the remote; we both like the sound quality. After his teeth are done he reads in bed for about ten minutes.

 

My rituals are similar but have a different focus. I floss and brush but more quickly than he and then I like to take a linden flower scented bath. Hot  in winter  and tepid in summer. I usually use the jacuzzi jets on my shoulders. I also like to read before bed but for a looooooooooong time.

 

Our bed is like a down forest. the pillow bed and then three head pillows each plus jim's knee pillow and a tube bolster I call the hindenberg that he likes to use as an arm support.

 

Abi's ritual is the sweetest of all. I hide little bits of dry kibble throughout the four room suite that is our bedroom and she can hunt for them during the night. Once all the pieces are placed--- she follows me to see where they are but doesn't eat them right away--- she jumps on the bed for some play time or to eat from our hands. But one night Abs didn't find all her treats and in the morning one of shelves in my dressing room was awash with teensy black ants carting bits of dry kibble from under a shoe to the nearby window. Now I understand why Jim asked me not to hide food in his dressing room.

 

The weather here is much cooler and I was ablt to make chickenmarengo and a blueberry pie. Chicken Marengo is supposedly the food Napolean's army ate after the battle of marengo- made with what they could forage: chicken, white wine, tomatoes, olives, lemons and mushrooms. we eat it over rice. The pie is an american classic....... blueberries, lemon juice, cinnamon, cornstarch and mace encased in a two crust shell. just a sprinkle of course sugar on top of the pie. Oregon blueberries don't need any sweeteners. That's true.