Bee Crazy

I'm crazy for lovin' you, Bees, especially when battling an incredible addiction to chickens. I can't help it. Ever since I saw the movie, "Fried Green Tomatoes", I have been bound and determined to be a bee charmer. No, it was before that. Maybe it was Winnie the Pooh with the honey jar that did it...

Whatever the catalyst, here I find myself on the precipice of the leap into bee keeping. I am taking a class at the local JC and have lined up several mentors to personally guide me through it all.

Things I didn't know about bees: (the list is longer than what I do know!)
- on a hot day bees will carry droplets of water to each comb and then fan it with their wings to keep the entire hive cool.
- the worker bees, at the end of a swarm, which seems a little like a wild orgy and then moving into a new apartment, will do a maneuver that resembles the yoga move of Downward Facing Dog, to indicate that the Queen has entered the building.
- they need to drink water all year long and prefer salty, mineral water to chlorinated water.
- they are very tidy and will thoroughly clean out the hive during the winter.
- the worker bees are all females and when shutting down the hive for the winter...kill or drive off all of the drones.

That is one way to have a slumber party!