Paint and Ants

They say "Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noon day sun"  I can understand that.  Earlier this morning I Posted on Facebook that I had started to paint my park benches yesterday.  As soon as the dew on them dissipated, I set to work.  I figured the filigreed wrought iron would be the hardest part, so I began by painting them.

I'd always heard not to paint if it is hot out, and I thought I had made an early enough start.

Wrong.

Although I was easily done before eleven o'clock, by the time I was finishing the last side arm and legs it was hot.  I was sweating, the paint was drying almost as fast as I was applying it, and my paintbrush bristles had begun to stick together, so that the brush was almost permanently leaning at a ridiculous angle, kind of like a frog's back leg, although bristles stuck together, it was still pliable enough I could bend it in the opposite direction, but at the exact angle leaning either right of left. 

I had a bunch of tissues sitting on the bench so I could continue to wipe my brow, but by the time I was done painting there was more paint on them than sweat, and they frequently stuck to my fingers. 

Neighbors reminded me to stay hydrated, one even offered to help me move the benches to the shade, but I was almost done by this time, and figured it was waaaaay to late to do that, so I plugged along. 

I was going to try painting the slats of the benches this morning, but have since thought better of that.  Later this week it is supposed to cool off some, so I think the better part of valor would be to wait till then to paint.

However, the real reason for my blog posting today was not supposed to be about my painting experience, it is about ants.

Yes folks, yesterday they returned.  I think the heat has made them crazy.  I find them everywhere.  Not in batches, or trained soldier-like columns.  And, not just in the kitchen.  They are everywhere, even crawling on me...how on earth are they getting on me.  I don't feel them climbing up my legs, yet suddenly there will be one or two on my arms, shoulders, and sometimes crawling across my neck.  That's just so, so....

creepy.  They are on my bay window, the stove, the sink, the bedroom floor, I was sitting on the sofa, and there was one crawling across the back of it.

This is driving me nuts.

I have ant traps everywhere.  I've been spraying. Outside, I've been drowning nests with boiling water...still they persist.  If I could see where they are coming from, I could get out my tacky glue, and block off their entry ways, but they appear so randomly I've no idea where the openings are. 

So, I've been spending a lot of time swearing, and squashing them under my thumbs.  If indeed the heat has made them crazy, I feel sorry for them, but that's not going to stop me from killing those "wascally, wascals".  Die you creepy creatures, die.