Ants

I was over at my friend MaryAnn’s after work, helping her take some photos for her cello. She’s trying to sell it, and needed a few images to either put up on e-bay, or place into a flyer. We hung out briefly, but I headed home soon after (and she headed to an appointment she had to keep).

A bit farther down her street, I noticed a small gathering of ants on the sidewalk.

Something you may not know about me – I find ants fascinating. Don’t get me wrong – if I see them in my apartment, I’ll do what I can to get rid of them. But inherently, they’re simply fascinating. I remember reading a lot about them as a kid (how they leave a particular scent trail so that other ants can follow their path), and found them intriguing in the same way that bees are intriguing.

I remember reading books and viewing documentaries on all varieties, some of which included leaf-cutter ants (who use leaves to grow/farm a fugus they feed on) and army ants (who seem to me as ferocious as piranhas).

Ahh. Serendipity. Here’s some video I just found that includes both leaf-cutter ants and army ants.

Here’s the pictures I took. There was a slight wind gusting about, and every so often a big breeze would knock twenty or thirty of them across the sidewalk like dust. In high school, I remember waiting for some friends by the Orchestra/Band entrance. I was sitting outside, sipping on a Mountain Dew, and doing Calculus homework. I looked down, and noticed a small line of ants. I tipped over some of my drink, and within a few minutes, a larger group of ants showed up to grab all the sugar they could. I spilled a little more and made a bigger pool. In time, I got a pretty big swarm of them to surface, and I seriously lost track of time… just watching them work.

I feel like, had I not pulled myself away, I could have stuck around for an hour just watching.