Smart (Read: Stupid) Ants

There are many ants in the house. And they seem to thrive on many things. Salt, for instance. I just don't get it. There is a jar of sugar nearby, slightly open, but they deliberately choose to swarm the salt. Alright, I have to broaden my horizon. Perhaps they need salt to flavor their bland food. Perhaps in their next visit they might want some pepper and other herbs, too.

Maybe they're smart. Or stupid. Depending on which way you look at it. I made tuna sandwiches today. I left the tuna can open for several minutes. When I returned to the table, there were so many ants! Curiously, they chose to swarm the tuna-less can, not the tuna itself. He said that the ants were smart--they chose the part that the humans wouldn't consume. I said the ants were simply stupid. (I refuse to think that they're smart. Yep, 'tis my ego speaking.)

Some hours ago I found out that the ants had another thing to attack. My Listerine mouthwash! Did they long for fresh breath or something after eating cockroaches for breakfast? Or perhaps they just wanted to get drunk? Heck, when I gargle using that I usually have tears on my eyes. The stuff is that strong. And there they were, happily attempting to suck the antiseptic liquid. Maybe they thought it was some kind of exotic sweet syrup. After all, the color is blue. (I wonder, can they differentiate Listerine and Pepsi Blue?)

And hey, whatever happen to the ol' proverb? When there is sugar, ants would be there, too. Now I can change the sugar with salt, tuna-less can, listerine,... and perhaps tomorrow, I can find other things to substitute sugar with.