Everything Happens for a Reason

Images - John in first class seating, Carpenter ants, 386 Delaware Ave post June 20, 2010

No, I am not in Italy. I'm not even in Scarborough. We are still in Burlington, our flight was cancelled, but I have to say that Err Canada is getting better. They cancelled the flight before we had to leave for the airport.

Then, I spent the day on the phone with the Aeroplan people trying to rebook our flights.

The first woman I spoke to broke the terrible news to me, more than once, that there was volcanic activity in Iceland and that travel was being affected!

After I recovered from that shock, she helpfully suggested that I get someone who was comfortable with computers and the www to help me. Unfortunately, something happened to our telephone connection at that point, and I had to call back and ask for someone new.

The next person was terrific, very patient with me, considering I don't know how to get on the web, and actually rebooked us for May 1 (the bad news) and (the good news) Direct to Rome, FIRST CLASS!!

Hence the first rationale for the title of this post.

Second rationale for the title, SM flies into Rome 10 minutes after us, and we were able to get Kath on a flight the same day.

Third - G and J are HOME!

Fourth - about an hour after we would have already left for the airport, I walked into the kitchen and discovered many winged insects on our kitchen floor (I have learned that pronouncing this "Wing- Ed insects", rather than just winged makes me sound much more learned (Learn-Ed), and partially makes up for my lack of facility with the web). Deducing that they had to be coming from somewhere, I looked up and discovered a writhing mass of the aformentioned insects swarming through our beautiful - and very wooden - cathedral ceiling. Arming myself with a can of RAID (sorry Brian) I sprayed the ceiling and it literally rained bugs for the next hour.

SL then patiently showed me what the www was, and how we might use it to identify the creatures as CARPENTER ANTS!

My new-found treasure-trove of information the www assured me that carpenter ants are in fact, very beneficial, and I quote:

"Benefits of Carpenter Ants"
Carpenter ants “play a significant ecological role in forested ecosystems.”(2) A nest of carpenter ants can eat thousands of insects that would otherwise feed on forest trees. In turn, the ants are food for other creatures; a well-known animal that feeds on carpenter ants is the pileated woodpecker.(2)"

Now I am the last person to want to deprive the pileated woodpecker of its dinner, but when I saw another www article that claimed that carpenter ants founded Habitat for Humanity... I began to wonder if everything on the www is gospel? I then called Ghostbusters.

So here's the thing. Had we left on time as planned, the wood in our house would have been a smorgasbord for the next 2 months for the little darlings... The Men in Black are scheduled for tomorrow, and SL and I are going to go to a B and B called the "Little Lake Inn" for a night till the mushroom cloud over our home dissipates.

Everything Happens for a Reason!