Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Winter Ruminations #1

A coupled of nights ago as the temperature dropped and the wind howled I found myself pacing along the back window. The action fueled by my high octane thoughts of; are they cold? Are they hungry? Was the wind permeating the thin walls of the Langstroth hive? Are they dead? Did I properly medicate and or winterize the girls? Does REI sell outwear for Apis mellifera? Where is their catalog they surly must have a blanket for just this conundrum? Aggg!

Foo (my dog) and I ventured into the windy night air looking for a modicum of hope that all was well within the boxes. As I stood shivering in the wind, the hives now illuminated by the holiday lights, I felt helpless as I stood in the stillness of the hives.

I couldn't put a sweater on them tonight or ever and so with trepidation I acquiesced into the world of beekeeping. There has been no, nor will there ever be, domestication of the honey bee in my back yard; no sit, stay, or come. No trips to the veterinarian for removal of pesky genitals, no bee park socialization, never to be besieged by wet noses in inopportune moments and or places.

The inhabitants of the hives are not my children, they're bugs. The latter more inclined to clean up after themselves but both equally as patience and accommodating to my daily caprices.

Falling asleep seemed to take forever but when I woke the Colorado sun not only greeted but reminded me that it's nice place to live.

1 comment:

teleman212 said...

You can wrap them next year. I bought a slip over insulation called Bee Cozy for my girls. Looks like they have a good windbreak anyhow.