The tunnels have begun!

"I'm so excited! and I just can't hide it!...I'm about to lose control and I.... well, not exactly lose control, but I didn't know how excited I would be a week ago when I bought this super cool space-age gel ant farm. I checked on the little critters last night around midnight, you know, to see what ants do at night.

Do you know what ants do at night? Well, after the stressful day they had yesterday being transferred then nearly froze to death, they slept. I peeked in on them. I say peeked because I had placed a towel over the ant farm unit to make sure they got the darkness they needed. I just figured they'd probably appreciate some genuine, below-the-ground kind of darkness. I remember throwing a towel over my birdcage at night when I was a teenager. It helped calm the parrot down, and he slept like a baby.

I have always wondered what ants do at night. Do they sleep in their tunnels, each in their own little family unit? Do they sleep in one big communal room? So, before I went to bed last night, I peeked under the towel, my flashlight covered in red tissue paper so as not to disturb them too much. I was surprised, to say the least.

Imagine you have just moved into a new home. Walls for rooms are not finished. No furniture, no toilets. No running water. Nothing. But you are so happy to have the house, and you start working right away to fix the place up. You start putting up the walls. Then, at night time, it's time to sleep. It's cold. It's strange. So, do you all spread out into your own rooms? Remember, there are no rooms. Or do you all sleep together in the biggest room?

Well, the ants are community folk all the way. They were all huddled together on the top of the gel because their tunnels weren't finished, I suppose. They looked so sweet sleeping all close together like a big, happy family. I went to bed feeling pretty warm about the day despite they are still without a Queen. I tried to put all thoughts of their future out of my head so I could sleep.

This morning at 7:30 a.m., I woke up and before I even brushed my teeth, I trotted to the dining room to check on my six-legged guests. I wondered as I headed down the hall if they had already started their day without me. I lifted up the towel, and lo and behold, my little ones had a beautiful tunnel masterpiece started. I almost cried!

Kodak moment! I thought, as I ran to get my camera, and carried the ant farm out into the sun. The first three pictures above show what I saw at roughly 7:30 a.m. Well, I took several pictures, three of which made it to this site. Aren't they amazing!

Well, I had to get ready for a 9a.m. doctor appointment. So, I gave some attention to my dogs, Max and Misty, who are very concerned over my newfound interest. They can't seem to understand why I spend so much time either at the computer, or looking at the critters in the plastic box. Max wanted to sniff it, but no results. Misty just looked at me with sad eyes. So I gave them both a Greenie, patted them on the heads, and left.

It's not that I have too much time on my hands... it's that everything else is taking a back seat right now.

The doctor tells me it's time for lots of other tests now that I am 50-something, and I say to her questions, "No, I haven't had that one yet." "Haven't had that one either." "A what? I don't think so...." By the time school starts in two weeks, I should be all cleared away.

Soon, I am on my way home and can't wait to see what my little critters have done for me. The last three pictures show the progress they made by 12:30. Aren't they wonderful?

Now I've got to go deliver the remainder of those ants I bought yesterday to another teacher at my school also has a super cool space-age gel ant farm. Can't wait to tell her all about. I might even bring my ant farm to show her.

Evening report will probably be posted after 9pm tonite.

PS: are there any mymecologists out there? Can you tell me if these are really Harvester Ants? Email me if they're not. Thanks.