Bees

   A short title doesn't always mean that there is little to say. This is my first year as a beekeeper so it's almost like I can't be called a beekeeper yet, but the fact remains that I have bees, and I take care of them, so I must be a beekeeper.
   My first foray into beekeeping ended in disaster. I should have seen it coming. There are some things that a person should just avoid. Beekeeping is one of those things for me. I am allergic to bees. Before I had bees it had been years since I had been stung, and who knows how long since I was stung by a honey bee. Add to that my propensity to kill anything living. Somehow my kids are still alive, but they are the first thing in my care to live and apparently thrive.
   So this year in a moment of what another person would call craziness, I purchased a package of bees. Yes, you can buy a 3 pound package of bees. You can have it shipped to a person - imagine their surprise to open a box to find 3 pounds of bees staring back at them. I had stopped by a local beekeeping supply store to buy the essential gloves and veil because a few days before I had asked a friend that is a professional beekeeper to show me how to handle bees. It just so happened that that was the day that the store received their shipment of bee packages, and they had a few extra. I quickly phoned my friend and asked if I could borrow some old equipment from him until I could assemble my own. He said yes. Skip to present and those bees are gone - maybe I'll elaborate on that some other time, but suffice it to say that it was my fault. Luckily for me there was another chance to get bees this year. There was an ad on Craigslist for bees for sale, and now that I know a fair amount about what to look for I went and purchased a new hive. These had been a package this year and were currently pollinating blueberries in a fairly urban location. The really great thing was that the guy let me come in the day on a sunny day and look at the hives, and come back that night to pick it up. This hive is a winner. Almost all of the 10 frames were full of brood and honey. Seeing it next to the other hives made it apparent how much stronger it really is.
   When I was setting up the new hive at home the next morning and expanding it by adding a new deep on top, T was here to help. It is such a pleasure to do things with the person you love, and shares your interests, that sometimes it's easy to overstep. As she was running around doing chores I'd shout out that I needed something and she would bring it to me. After a few times of this I was about done and she was 15 or so feet from the hive. One of the bees in the air happened to get stuck in her hair. We all have heard that when a bee is on you it's best not to panic, but that's exactly what T did. This is the woman that I have never seen wince. She seems dainty to look at, and can be seen as quiet, and is actually the strongest person I know, but on this occasion she was LOUD! Think of those old movies where the woman shrinks into a corner screaming from the monster that is moving at 2 mph at her and there is a door right next to her. T flipped her head upside down and started some variation of the pee-pee dance. I came running like an idiot in full gear, covered in bees to save her. Big mistake. The bee I was after moved away from my less than delicate gloved hand and into her hair farther. Not to mention that with me came a few hundred of it's closest friends. T ran for the house. I ran after stripping off gear. When she went through the door as I was taking off my veil, I saw my reflection in the glass only to realize that I was pulling off my veil and there were quite a few bees at the back of my neck that had just been granted easy access. Change of plans - time for me to run screaming across the yard.
   T did end up getting stung. I thankfully did not. I have been stung numerous times since and am unsure of when exactly to expect a reaction. So far it seems that if it is a spot that is below my heart I should expect swelling and itching, but that's it. Yay! T had far less of a reaction. Just the usual pain and bump that faded over a day.
   The real takeaway for me here is that T is really a girl at heart. It's hard to see that in such a strong woman sometimes, so strong that she has redefined what a woman is to me, but a tiny bit of her is still that little girl that is afraid of bugs getting stuck in her hair. That and that she is determined. Even after that obviously frightening event she is still interested in learning and working with bees. That kind of spirit can never be conquered. I'm a lucky man.

~P