It's not always about the bees

Esox Lucius, 19lbs

Cheeky chappie

Should this be on Photoshop Disasters?

Fearless hack Daisy Wallage (daisy.wallage@archant.co.uk) writes on EDP 24, the Region's Daily Morning Newspaper of the Year (eh?). She reports television personality (eh?) and beekeeper Bill Turnbull as saying “I don’t really do it for the honey – I do it more to commune with the bees and get closer to nature." 


Bill has written a book, The Bad Beekeepers' Club, published in the US as Confessions of a Bad Beekeeper.  


Reviews anyone? 



http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/broadcaster_bill_turnbull_on_honey_hives_and_the_canaries_1_1127730

Old habits die hard

Home for retired beekeepers?

My least favourite task, extracting, is complete. The settling tank contains about 50lbs of honey. About twice as much again decorates the interior of the shed plus implements, my clothing and me. I tried using a paint stripper heat gun to pop the cappings. Fun, but ineffective, I found, and I resorted to knife-wielding violence. Old habits die hard. 

Is it April Fools' Day?

Here is what Philips says: "The design of the beehive is unconventional, appealing, and respects the natural behavior of the bees. It consists of two parts: entry passage and flower pot outside, and glass vessel containing an array of honeycomb frames, inside. The glass shell filters light to let through the orange wavelength which bees use for sight. The frames are provided with a honeycomb texture for bees to build their wax cells on. Smoke can be released into the hive to calm the bees before it is opened, in keeping with established practice."

This urinal-shaped hive is intended to be hung on a wall or pane of glass, with the white bit on the outside and the orange blob on the inside. Seems like an invitation to disaster. A few tugs of the cord from my enthusiastic children would test the hive well beyond destruction, emptying bees into my luxurious boudoir, to the dismay of all. And I wouldn’t wear that dress when beekeeping. 

http://www.design.philips.com/philips/sites/philipsdesign/about/design/designportfolio/design_futures/design_probes/projects/microbial_home/urban_beehive.page 

PS. What is an 'orange wavelength,' exactly?