Okay, it's only tangentally realted, but... I woke up this morning to a stream of ants coming in from upstairs. After wiping away their little bodies with the sponge and drying the area, I put down a double-layer of cayenne pepper and chili powder. I had read about this little trick but had yet to see it actually work.

Well, several hours later, the ants have gone. Amazing. I guess they are as allergic to the chili as much as our charming hostess is....

lemon. run lemon where their trails are. works well.