I learn more about everything from my bees, than anything ever before it.  I think it should be mandatory that everyone has one beehive at least once in thier life; these are the most amazing little things Ive ever seen.

Ive stopped feeding both Hives but the rain hasn’t been helping them gather pollen and nectar so I’m keeping a close eye on what they are storing right now. If the weather turns to consistent total crud I  put out some feed to carry them through the bad times; the Spring has been extraordinarily wet, really bad for bugs who rely on pollination but Ive taken extra care to ensure health and welfare for my girls. I heard about a guy who interviewed with a local news outfit and he lost all his bees to what he called: “a bad wet Spring”. I wondered why he didn’t feed them. If you take care of your things to the best of your ability, (in this case ability defined by time and dedication)  they will last.
I went to the local bee club meeting this week, I’m still unsure of my place in this community, it will be a niche group for sure. Maybe a niche within a niche, from what Ive seen so far I’m not remotely close to what Im determining is the “local beekeeper”. Takes a village, right?  To be specific I am not overly interested in delving too deeply into the local scene, but with the big picture in mind, its a necessary thing.  Its tough for me to be in a room full of hippies and keep my mouth shut so I use twitter to poke and beat. Ultimately this will be a costly mistake for me to continue so I have to stop it, now. This will be yet another great lesson from the bees for me, an exercise in self control. Hippies are humans too, kind’ve. Right?  Mostly?

Today Gen. McChrystal meets with the President about his disaster of a move in Rolling Stone, I’m eager for the results of that meeting, I hope the President slaps the General around then ships him right back out to do his job. In this great Age of IdiocyEmotion and Feelings, I’m ready to see some grit, some honor and tenacity. The Gen. made himself out to be a prick sure, but its time more than ever to hold his nose to the grindstone and make him see the job through. Replacing him will do nothing more than sideline progress in the war as a new General gets up to speed; think of the total ownership the President will have of his newly humbled General, cut down, beaten and returned to Service. Consider the likes of Beck and Limbaugh: what sort of frenetic social gyre will they happily build from such a dismissal? The tea party and its reckless architects would have a heyday with this, what better way to shut them down before they even gather steam.
The (BP) mess in the Gulf is so utterly depressing to see, and nothing is changing, improving in real time or projected time(line). Bi-Partinaship is not what we hired the President for, our country is in utter disgrace by our own hand, its time for a showing of strength, wisdom and fortitude. Accountability is a word that describes our needs well because deep inside that word sits resolve, intelligence and relentless determination. We are in a deep dark hole still, perhaps keeping a disgraced General in Service to his Country would mark a social turnaround, force us to collectively take a closer look at the legacy we are destroying before we even begin our God given right to build.

Its after midnight, this will auto post sometime around 8am Wednesday, good night.

the girls @ home

prepping the smoker

homeward bound

ready to launch

At any rate, I am distracted by everything around me, hell even twitter has been getting dusty this week.

Keeping bees has taught me what I suspected all along: you cant keep bees, all you can do is give them the best home you can build, feed them when they need and caretake/tend on a regualr basis. The phrase domestic bees means nothing to me, these are feral creatures, highly charged, fiercely protective of thier home and Queen and absolutely delicate. I am fascinated with them when they crawl up my arm, all six legs in motion, tickling and scuttling looking for anything sweet. The organization within a beehive is stunning, what I gave them and what they turned it into boggles my mind; I harvest thier exacting, wild, hexagonic comb weekly lest it overrun my hives; each piece carefully investigated before i put it away in its place, each piece a marvel in its creation. My Hives smell a certain way: warm honey and wax with hints of mint and whether you can pick it up or not, I swear the bees have thier own fragrance.
Ive been North a few times this month and driving through the Skagit Valley I see beehives everywhere, farmers looking to pollinate thier crops. What I dont see are nice Hives however; every colony sits housed in decrepit, shady looking boxes. Its doubtless a commercial operation but it makes me glad that I took the time to detail mine to the last degree. My girls live in a Bee Mansion, mansions that I built.
I tend my bees every day, I have so much to learn about them, i dont think it will all be known in my lifetime; its that complex. Frankly Im not even sure I can sustain them through the first Winter, theres so much I just wont know until I learn….the hard way Im afraid. Either way Im giving it hell til the very end.
I grifted a fingertip of honey from my girls this week when I was in the Hives doing their weekly checkups; the honey tasted like the richest cherry, almost an amaretto in fact. I was shocked at the quality of flavor, its intensity and decadence. Strong words for honey I know, but the only words that fit.
I now own shipwreckhoney dot com, look for that launch this week. Obviously the drop will happen here first.

I havent touched a camera in over a week, that will change immediately.

High Tea with the trusty Jug

Friday 2pm.

Time to search for something distilled from potatoes and served by itself over ice thats been sort of crushed over an orange wedge. Somewhere in this city I have a couple cases of Smirnoff fresh off the truck but Im in no mood to go hunt that truck down right now.

Shipwreck Honey dot com is about to launch, amazingly enough. Lets see if I can keep it afloat long enough to attach a shopping cart to it later this Summer. Sharpen your paypal accounts if you want killer local pirate honey, Ive got mad deals already in the works. Dont forget the teachings of the hippies in their earthen dojo’s: to beat the allergens in your area, one must ingest the pollens of said allergens. Why not ingest those allergens in the form of my honey? Tasty and good for you.  The only thing I havent figured out yet is how I will utilize local farmers markets on weekends; I dont have the time or the patience. I think I will hire hot teenaged Asian girls to peddle my wares while I nurse hangovers every weekend at home or in the mountains or on the lake.

Have you downloaded the Mixtape yet? Why not? Trouble!

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