Can’t believe it’s Friday afternoon already.
Back when the kids were growing up, Friday afternoon equaled, “XXX new movie’s out today, I’ll have the kids at Saratoga 6 / Century XX @ 4 and we’ll catch the matinee.” Just about every early / late summer / Thanksgiving weekend and Christmas week, that’s what Friday afternoon was for our family (and some of the kid’s friends).
Then the kids grew up and moved away… and we got busier / more involved in careers that had us staying later and later on Fridays. And then we moved to the House on Walnut Drive – where we have more green / various colored stuff growing than I ever imagined possible in my lifetime. Truth be told, over time, TCofMN’sB (takin’ care of mother nature’s business) got to be a little much when compared to doing our historical “fun stuff” (bike riding, movie-watching… hell, just hanging out.)
And then (to paraphrase Ray Stevens), along came the bees.
It’s obvious to everyone that keeping bees is good for the local environment… they’re wonderful pollinators and a number of neighbors have commented on how well their plants are doing these past two years since we’ve started keeping bees.
It’s probably just as obvious that keeping bees – when they’re healthy and productive – results in honey… maybe even more honey than Pooh Bear could eat.
But I’ll let you in on something of a secret I’ve stumbled across since becoming a beekeeper: When you keep bees, you get more time to watch movies and do fun stuff. How does that happen, you ask?
For me it happened when I realized that all of those pesky “weeds” we’d always been so worried about pulling and cleaning up are really excellent sources of pollen for the bees. Which, in turn, goes to feeding the colony / hive. Which then goes into honey and, in turn goes in to me. (I’ve had bad hay fever the past several decades and it’s become practically non-existant this year.)
So I let ’em grow. Those bright yellow things out in front of our house? Dandelions. Lots of dandelions. “I’d love to take those out, but the bees like / need them.”
So instead of spending late Friday afternoon doing yard work so the neighbors across the street have a better view, I’m going to leave the CampbellHoney dandelion buffet table up indefinitely.
It’s Friday afternoon and “Up” is released this afternoon, anyone up for a movie? 🙂
As always, thanks for stopping by, be well and don’t forget to write when you get work.
hal