Ready for Battle

ready for the bees

Yes, I tucked my pant legs into my socks, geek that I am. I was not interested in bees flying up my pants. This was my first visit out to the bees after being stung 9 times at once, so you can understand that I was taking every precaution. Including wearing my husband’s winter gloves. … Read more

Taking a Break

tomates

I haven’t done much with bees lately. First, I was recovering from my 9 stings. Now, I seem to be having some sort of reaction to something that touched my face. No one really knows, or has any concrete answers for me. I’m slathering (sparingly) the itchy red swollen stinging burning oozing parts of my … Read more

Counting for Now

bee stings

Well, the results of the poll are tied between counting until my age, or counting forever. So I guess I’ll keep track for now. If I’m going to keep accurate results, though, I should mention that I actually had 9 stings last time, not 8 as previously posted. Once they all started to swell I … Read more

Guest Pic

misplaced honeycomb

This picture comes to you courtesy of Todd, a fellow newbie to the world of beekeeping. He and I, along with a few others, met at Little City Farm when we attended a small workshop on beekeeping. Those few of us that went on to take a more in-depth course at the Townsend House, University … Read more

Thinking

Peek-a-boo bees

Not much happening with the bees – other than me trying to figure out what I’m going to do with them. I’ve been talking to Ken about how I should deal with the hives – well, the one hive in particular. My two hives have very different personalities, which I think can be attributed to … Read more

New Experience

showing off the bees

One of my favourite things so far about the bees – showing them off! Bees are so important to our food supply, it’s essential that as many people as possible learn why. I really enjoy taking people to see them, and explaining how they live together and stay alive, while keeping us alive as well. … Read more

Popeye

working with the bees

The above photo doesn’t much relate to the exact topic of this post, other than to show how wonderfully peaceful the bees were before they turned into suicide bombers. The results of the penny experiment: well, I reacted more than I usually do, and I think it’s because I got so many stings at once. … Read more

Still Counting

bee stings

So… had an eventful time in the beeyard today. Apparently bees don’t like it when you take apart their home. 8 stings today brings my running total to 10. When do I stop counting? Take my poll!!! ….in the sidebar to the right. Should I explain myself? I was on a mission to get rid … Read more

Surprise

beekeeping catalogs

Are there beekeeper fairies? Or elves? We came back from vacation today, and I found 3 beekeeping catalogues in a bag on my front door! They look interesting, I’m looking forward to giving them a proper look once the camping clutter has disappeared from my dining room. And by ‘disappeared’ I’m referring to the process … Read more

Onions and Honey

confetti rice

While I’m on the topic of this family, I have to thank Michelle for the winter onions (sometimes called egyptian onions) she gave me the last time we were there. I cooked some up with brown rice and finely diced veg, and a smidge of honey thrown in for good measure – since I was … Read more