Category Archives: Culture, or lack thereof

How did your bees do?

Posted on August 24, 2019 by

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 , , | Leave a comment

Arrested for importing three bottles of honey

Posted on August 23, 2019 by

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 | 1 Comment

National Honey Bee Day

Posted on August 17, 2019 by

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 , | 4 Comments

Ulee Jackson has died

Posted on August 16, 2019 by

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 , , | 5 Comments

Coconut Monkeys

Posted on July 30, 2019 by

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 →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Ecology, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged | 4 Comments

Apimondia: Will you be there?

Posted on July 3, 2019 by

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 →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Outreach, Travels | Tagged , | 6 Comments

It’s Canada Day

Posted on July 1, 2019 by

It’s Canada Day. I moved to Canada in the 70s to keep bees. It was a good move for me. Yesterday, I noticed that the conservative news magazine, US News and World Report, has placed Canada as number one (for … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Pollinator Week 2019

Posted on June 17, 2019 by

In the past three or four years, I began to notice that honey bees aren’t the only bees in the world. What a surprise! There are over 20,000 other versions. Some as big as elephants, some as small as pin … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Ecology, Outreach, Pollination | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Comb honey euphoria?

Posted on April 7, 2019 by

Three million people have watched this 12-minute video of a person eating honey comb and fried chicken. Every nuance of the first stage of digestion is clearly visible and audible. Microphones focus on noisy chewing and slurping sounds. Why would … Continue reading →

Posted in Comb Honey, Culture, or lack thereof, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , | 8 Comments

March 30: World Apitherapy Day

Posted on March 30, 2019 by

Today is World Apitherapy Day. And it’s my birthday.  Coincidence? Maybe. Apitherapy, which means using bee stuff for health, can include eating pollen, propolis, wax, royal jelly, bee larvae, and honey – or rubbing them on your face. But for … Continue reading →

Posted in Apitherapy, Culture, or lack thereof, Outreach, People, Stings, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments