Author Archives: Ron Miksha
Feel like a MOOC?
You can never know too much about bugs. That’s why I signed up for Bugs 101, offered by a rival school, the University of Alberta. (That’s up in Edmonton – I’m in Calgary, at a different, and arguably warmer, closer, … Continue reading
How did your bees do?
You hear the question every time beekeepers meet. “How did your bees do?” The answer is usually in pounds, barrels, or dollars in the bank. The question came up recently here within Calgary’s bee club. We have an extremely well-run … Continue reading
Posted in Beekeeping, Climate, Culture, or lack thereof
Tagged Alberta, Calgary Bee Club, honey crop
2 Comments
Arrested for importing three bottles of honey
This gripes me. Here’s a guy, holding down two jobs (construction and cleaning) who had his life destroyed by US Customs because he brought three jars of honey home from Jamaica while returning from holidays. He declared the honey in … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Honey, Strange, Odd Stuff
2 Comments
Photographs of readers
Originally posted on Why Evolution Is True:
Well, I’ve run out of readers with fancy sports cars, but we have plenty of other interesting people on tap. One is Ron Miksha, who shows us that you can be a grad…
Posted in Uncategorized
2 Comments
National Honey Bee Day
I haven’t quite recovered from World Bee Day (May 20th) and here it is, World Honey Bee Day, which coincides with National Honey Bee Day, as it’s practiced in the USA. Clever that they both fall on the same third … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Humour, Save the Bees, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged Honey Bee Day, World Bee Day
4 Comments
Ulee Jackson has died
Peter Fonda died today. Most accolades will mention his starring role in 1969’s Easy Rider. I won’t. Instead, I’ll talk about his performance in Ulee’s Gold. That movie gave Fonda his only Oscar nomination (he lost to his friend Jack … Continue reading
Posted in Commercial Beekeeping, Culture, or lack thereof, History, Movies, People
Tagged Florida, Peter Fonda, Ulee's Gold
5 Comments
Coconut Monkeys
Some years ago, I had a job that I didn’t like. The money was good, but the work was bad. I was stuck in “Coconut Monkey” syndrome. Farmers in south India are sometimes plagued by monkeys stealing their crops. The … Continue reading
Bees in Space
Fifty years ago, I was a kid, glued to the TV, fascinated by man’s first frolic on the moon. Grainy black and white images from the moon filled our grainy black and white television. It was a signal from the … Continue reading
Saturday at the Hive
A new beekeeper learns best by clinging to the leg of an experienced beekeeper. That’s how I learned, but I was four years old at the time. For you older folks, you need a mentor, someone who’s actually a better … Continue reading
Apimondia: Will you be there?
This year’s 46th Apimondia International Apicultural Congress – APIMONDIA 2019 MONTRÉAL – begins September 8 in Montréal, Canada. This is the big bi-annual beekeepers’ and bee researchers’ bash. I’m hoping that many of the readers of this blog will be able … Continue reading
