Bees!

So, I had to try to get some pictures of the inside of the green bin bee hive.  They've been pretty tolerant of me so far; I try to spend a little time with them each day, so they get used to me hanging around.  I'm pretty sure that last scene was some kind of...mating something-or-other.  They don't usually hang out on the outside like that.

Indeed, why would they ever leave, when this wonderland exists?   So for this photo, I got down low and carefully, slowly lifted the top of the bin.  Look at all that honeycomb!  Are you kidding me?!?

Nope. You are totally not kidding me.  I think it's so beautiful.  I showed it to Erik and he said it was "disgusting".  I'm trying to understand that view point.  Is there something creepy about it?  Something alien-like or disturbing?  I just can't see it that way!  I love these dang bees.

I've been hesitant to buy a hive, because I have no idea what or how or anything else.  But I went ahead and ordered a hive from Mann Lake.  Tommy is quite excited about the netting that comes with this kit!  He anticipates becoming quite the beekeeper.  I also contacted a lovely woman from Alameda Bees who will swing by when my hive arrives and move them over for me.  She charges an hourly rate, and says it'll take a couple hours or more.  I talked to her on the phone for some time, me quite panicked (will they die?  am I killing them?  are they dead yet?) and her quite calm (ah, yes, the green bin takeover...happens all the time.  No, it won't get too hot.  They like heat.  They aren't going to leave.  They aren't going to die.)

I am nervous about moving them (though she claims it's no big thing at all) because I feel like they've done all this work, and if they have to move, do they what, do they just start all over?  If somebody did that to me, after all that work, I think I would just curl up and cry.  But she seemed very non-plussed by the whole thing.  It's just what bees do.  (The whole conversation reminded me a little bit of a conversation I had with my OB/GYN when I was pregnant with Scotty.  She found his heartbeat and we sat listening to it for a second.  Then I asked, "Do you think he ever gets bored?  You know, because there's not much to do in there?"  And she openly stared at me before saying, slowly, that nobody had ever asked her that before.  She thought about it for a minute and then said that she thought he might not get bored at all, because there was a lot of growing he had to do, which would take up a lot of his time.  I thought that made some sense, too.  I think she thought I was weird, though.  I never did shake that feeling!)

Okay!  Bees!