September 15, 2007

Bell Jar Bees - Step 1: stick foundation strips in bell jar on top of hive Step 2: BZZZZZ Step 3: Profit!
posted by Hank Mabuse 17 years ago
  • Oooooh, PRETTY!
  • Whoa.
  • WHOA!! Freaky. Cool. Sticky. Yummy.
  • no privacy for the bees Good school project though. Oh, wait. Kids can't learn about teh natural world--it might HURT them.
  • that's way cool :)
  • Cool! Thanks for posting it!
  • At my high school, one teacher kept a hive of bees on the school roof that was pretty much unknown to most students and other teachers. He worked the hive as a hobby, and only let a very VERY few students in on his little avocation. For some reason I was one of them. After ten minutes of verbal instruction indoors, he sent me out there on the roof, in beekeper's protective garb, ALONE, to open the hive, look at the honey combs, and just learn. He watched from the window. As is apparent, I remember it to this day. Of my strongest recollections was that the bees didn't give a shit that I was there, opening up their world and pulling hundreds of them out into the open air. I am quite certain that if I had been wearing no protective gear I would not have been stung, they were all very cool with my being there and looking into their world. I do remember they were noisy, and seemed very determined to keep busy with their work despite my intrusion. This was very surprising to me. I sure wish Beeswacky was still here, I would like to get some advice on beginning beekeeping and see if it is a reasonable hobby for me to consider for next Spring. Oh, well. There's always the web.
  • If you are calm, and don't make violent movements that unduly disturb them, bees will largely ignore you. If you freak out and start shooting out pheromones, they will get pissed off. Although a fear pheromone hasn't been identified in humans AFAIK, it's been hypothesised that you fart it out thru your pores if you feel scared, triggering attack response in some creatures like bees & wasps. It's probably a combination of pheromones. Cows have pheromoones.
  • Also, honey has to be one of the most awesome substances in nature, & really fucking good for you (if no allergy). Just ignore the fact its pretty much bee vom.
  • I never heard about the fearomone [!] but even as a small child I never feared bees, and any time one came near me, or even landed on me, I would calmly stand still and watch it until it realized I am not a flower [!!] and flew away. to this day I have only been stung once in my life, by a bee I did not see upon which I placed my leg. can't blame the bumble in that case!
  • Good school project though. Oh, wait. Kids can't learn about teh natural world--it might HURT them. A lot of the teachers I work with are doing covert vermiposting in the classroom. One of them said recently she's been moving the bin to a new location once a week to make sure the custodian doesn't stumble on it.
  • Dang! I get soooo irritated by people who can't seem to just STAND STILL and ignore the bee. Why do idiots have to squeal and swat and jump around? I don't like bug life sneaking up on me, and I might jump, but at least I don't act like a whole forest full of rabid bears is clawing at my throat. Actually, next time I see a bee I'm going to smile and sing to it--just an attempt to let the hive know they're being missed and to get on with the reproducing themselves. I haven't seen anything but lousy wasps and hornets for weeks and weeks. I miss bees. I miss Bees, too.
  • My dad keeps bees, at some stage it crossed from hobby to industry and he now supplies honey to most of the local population. It can be quite physical, and there are times when things must be done, which takes it out of the casual hobby frame. But then, lots of the time they can be left to their own devices. If you have somewhere that no animals or children(or yoofs) have access to then it's feasible. Get Started
  • I like bees, too, as well as their honey and amazingly useful wax. They only scare me when absent. Speaking of which, does no-one know the fate of Beeswacky and his delightful rhymes? Was he in the plane with Steve Fossett? Is he trapped in a bell jar? Swimming with a merman's tail? Playing Civ? Taking up a new career selling OJ memorabilia perhaps? Was it something we said? Will we ever know?
  • Even if he doesn't return to posting regularly (although of course I hope he will), I'd just like to hear that he's OK.
  • Seconded.
  • WAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhh!!
  • *snifs, plays absentmindedly with beeswacky action figure*
  • A quick scan of the archives reveals that we have also been abandoned by Chyren as of 7/31/07. I'm sure there are more. Maybe Chryen is with beeswacky...
  • Oh, I think Chy's around.
  • Quiet you.
  • /rimshot