Thursday, September 23, 2021

The Collapse LXXXII: Bees And Dinner

04 April 20XX + 1

My Dear Lucilius:

Spring has apparently begun to “sprung” here, if you can believe it this early in the year. Temperatures are already pushing into the 50’s F (10 to 14 C), which is definitely an aggressive temperature increase for this time of year – mind you, our nights are above freezing (but not by much), so we are still weeks away from sensibly trying to plant things outside. That said, preparing inside the green house continues apace, including starting seedlings for planting soon.

It has also given the first jolt to the bees to start coming out of the hive en masse.

This is always the most nervous part of the year for me with regards to the bees. Yes, I do what I can to insulate them and yes, they have been designed by God and Nature to manage such things – but it is still nerve wracking to wait. Will I see them begin to trickle out of the entrance reducer as a stream, or will only a few come out, or none at all?

You may remember me telling you this, but I really do not open the hives in the Winter – the bees will form a ball around the queen and “shiver” their way through, coming out for cleansing flights (a polite word for “bathroom breaks”) when the temperature comes up a bit – and thus me opening up the hive not only disturbs the bees, but dissipates any warmth they may have. I do everything I can to help them, of course. There is provided food easily accessible within the hive, and I have a variety of insulation techniques I use to keep the hive as well protected from the cold and wet as possible. As a result of not opening them, one simply never knows.

In this case, I had a happy ending: both hives exuded a steady stream of bees as the sun hit the hives. I will wait a bit longer until I open them up – until I get some sense that Spring is really “here” – but it was a nice reassurance.

Young Xerxes came by while I was watching the bees make their exodus. We talked for a few minutes over this and that – the usual things we cover in a visit – and then he asked me the oddest question I have been asked in over a year: Would I be interested in having Palm Sunday Dinner with him and his girlfriend?

And, he mentioned in passing, his girlfriend’s mother.

I have come to have a certain fondness for Xerxes. He genuinely appears to be a young man who is diligent and innovative. In the past months that I have come to known him, he is exactly the sort of person that one would need in the circumstances that have occurred. He has adapted and continuing to look forward, not back.

That said, I had not imagined him as a potential match maker.

I pushed him – very gently – on the subject. He assured me there was nothing to his request at all, other than a desire to invite me over to spend Palm Sunday in the company of people rather than alone. It just so happened that his girlfriend lived with his mother. His family would be present as well, so there would hardly be the sort of thing where there would be forced conversation with select individuals (My words, not his of course. He was far more circumspect about it.).

I finally acquiesced – after all, I do not have any relevant excuses to bring to bear at this point, like having to stay home to wait for a call or catch something online or do some work around The Cabin. If nothing else is true now, we all have time. His reaction was happy but somewhat non-committal, as if he was attempting to not be more excited about cornering an animal lest it suddenly bolt.

I am old enough, Lucilius, to know when I am being maneuvered into position. It is touching, amusing, and concerning all at the same time.

Your Obedient Servant, Seneca

6 comments:

  1. My parents would wrap their hives in black tar paper in the winter so that sunlight would be absorbed and help keep the bees warm.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ed, that is one very common method. Also insulated hive covers.

      I have seen where beekeepers removed the outermost two frames in the deep and replace them with what is effectively a frame sized insulation piece to help with the heating/cooling as well.

      Delete
  2. Anonymous8:19 AM

    I buy honey from Killer Bee Honey in NC. The hives high in the mountains at the boundary of public land and theirs. Found it through Bayou Renaissance Man. Bought a bottle for a friend turning 80 who has honey every day. She thought it the best she had ever had. Every year in their posts they talk about the issues of keeping the hives alive in the cold mountains. I'm allergic so no bee keeping for me But I really appreciate the fact that there is people who do.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous - Thank you so much for the link. I will definitely check them out.

      I had bees for three or four years. It is really an enjoyable hobby. I could watch the bees go in and out of the hive for hours on end.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous2:01 PM

    Hi love your letters. Does anyone ever put out water in chicken waters so the bees do not have to fly far for water? Woody

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Woody! It is a good point and something that is in most bee books, that they need a source of ready water. One recommendation I have even seen is a water bowl with some sort of small float in it so that they can get out if they get stuck.

      Delete

Comments are welcome (and necessary, for good conversation). If you could take the time to be kind and not practice profanity, it would be appreciated. Thanks for posting!