Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Five Busy Honey Bees song

Five Busy Honey Bees
Five busy honey bees were resting in the sun.
The first one said, "Let us have some fun."
The second one said, "Where shall it be?"
The third one said, "In the honey tree."
The fourth one said, "Let's make some honey sweet."
The fifth one said, "With pollen on our feet."
The five little busy bees sang their buzzing tune,
As they worked in the beehive all that afternoon.
Bzzzzzz! Bzzzzzz! Bzzzzzz! Bzzzzzz! Bzzzzzz!

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

New Hive Location for Spring 2010

Saturday was a nice day so I decided to go take some pictures from the spot I am thinking of putting my NEW hives this coming spring. There are about three or four spots I thought about putting them, but this one tops the list because of it's easy accessibility, which is kind of a big deal. The pictures are taken from the spot where the hives will be setting. The first one is taken from the direction the hives will be facing, and the second one from the rear direction on the hives.


Tuesday, October 13, 2009

FEEDBACK

I am leaving this post to request feedback. If you read this blog quite often, or if you have just happened up on it for the first time, tell me what you think. What would you like to see more of? Pictures? Factual information about honey bees? new ideas? Honey bee news? Stories about my hives? I am about to start building new hives, would you like to see lots of pictures of my progress? Wanna know the different types of honey bees and help me choose the ones I will use next year? Wanna see pics of the areas I am thinking of locating my hives next spring...maybe vote on it?
I'm just trying to get some idea of what people are interested in knowing about Honey Bees and my operation.

Friday, October 9, 2009

Getting Ready for Winter

Not much is going on the bee-yards right now. The fall honey flow is coming to an end, and it's time to prep for winter. I was hoping to get A little honey to harvest this fall. But I didn't. Honestly I am a little down-hearted about that, but I shouldn't be because I knew from the beginning that I would more than likely not get to harvest any honey this year.
I am feeding my hives in hopes that they can put up enough to make it through the winter...I almost think it would be cheaper to let them try it on their own with out feeding them sugar water, and if they don't make it then buy more bees...we'll see. But I'm going to try and feed them till it gets too cold.
We're really looking forward to next spring! I plan on doing a little experimenting with some new hives and new types of bees. We have decide that we are going to make all the hives that we add next year. It was a relatively easy choice that all new hives will be some sort of Top Bar Hive, instead of using the Langstroth hives that I bought this year (and not cheaply either!!). I plan to document, on here, the process of building my TBHs with photo's and some video!! .
Look for me to start posting that around probably January.

Here is a GREAT link about Top Bar Hives, it's the one I use the most. But be aware, it is ALOT of info!!!

Here is the Wikipedia link for Top Bar Hives.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Wild Swarm 08/10/2009

Yes it is true I have caught another wild swarm. This makes my second one this year, and this one I caught by myself (without the help of a mentor) YEA ME! I was at work on Monday morning 8/19/09 and got a phone call from my Grandma "I think something is wrong with one of your hives (I live next door to granny) there are bees all in the air near the end of the garden." So here I go, headed home to try and salvage what is left of one of my hives. I get there and sure enough at the end of the garden on a tree limb is a huge swarm of bees. I am like "great, what did i do/didn't do to make them want to swarm?" So, first things first, I get everything ready and I check my hives to see which one they came out of. After checking them both I know beyond a shadow of a doubt...those aren't MY bees. Well, they are now :) After determining that my hives were okay I gather my stuff to catch this bad boy. This is the second swarm catch for me, first solo (solo means no help from an experienced beekeeper). The last swarm I caught I was more of a helper getting some hands-on experience. It was an easy swarm, low on a fence post in a middle of someones yard. This swarm I had on my hands now was not so nice. It was in a tree limb about 8ft off the ground ON A HILLSIDE. long story short: I caught the swarm, took them to the "Possum Hollow division of Northside Honey Bees" and hived them next to my first wild swarm.



Here's one of me on a ladder on the hillside. I would not recommend doing what that guy is doing with no protective equipment, actually I suggest against it.

Bees in a box

Brushing the bees off the limb

The bees that won't brush get the water treatment. sprinkle some water on 'em and it inhibits their ability to fly. Just sprinkle some water, smack the limb really hard, and watch alot of bees fall in the box. (alot of bees not all the bees)

Bees in a box, ready to be put in a new home and make me some HONEY!

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Some new pics

It was a nice evening so I thought I would take some pics of my bees. They cooperated too! Since it was a warm evening there were quite a few just hanging out on their "landing pad", or "front porch" which ever you want to call it. I also took some pics of one of our peach trees that are LOADED down with peaches. Think pollination from the bees helped that out? I do. The peaches are taste gooood too!





Thursday, July 2, 2009

WE'RE ON FACEBOOK!

Northside Honey Bees now has it's own fan page on Facebook. You can find it by using the search tool that Facebook provides, just type in Northside Honey Bees! Even though I do not have any honey to sell yet, I feel that there is nothing wrong with getting your name out there. Everyone is Facebooking and Twittering now so there is no reason not to be connected. As soon as the honey and related products are ready I just update the status on our Facebook page and, as the late Billy Mays would say, BAMM! Everyone that has came to the page and signed up knows right away that we got honey! I am super excited. I am already thinking about getting some shirts with a little honey bee and Northside Honey Bees wrote in the breast pocket area...think they would sell...??? I would wear one. Also some hats would be nice. Those type of things would make great gifts to relatives and friends, and also another way to get our name out there. I guess I am easily excitable, but I love doing this! I love keeping bees!

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

New pics soon!

Just letting you guys Know that first chance I get to get in my hives I am going to take some pics and post them on here. You won't believe how they have multiplied. Those hives are full of bees right now! It has been kinda hot to mess with them, bees get agitated very easily in warm weather, so I am picking and choosing when I get in them very carefully! Went out there yesterday to check 'em over, just gonna open the hive and peek inside. Well I ended up with some bees inside my shirt! And got stung in the stomach once! It was warm and they did not want to be bothered! So as soon as I get a decent evening I am going to get some new pics up.

Friday, June 5, 2009

Hello again!

It has been almost 2 months since my last post, and I am soooo sorry. It just seems like I have been really busy, then when I think "I should update my blog" I am like NAH. My bees are doing GREAT they are busy busy busy. The "Honey flow" is on, and it is the busiest time of the year for a honey bee. Honey flow is a term used by beekeepers indicating that one or more major nectar sources are in bloom and the weather is favorable for bees to fly and collect the nectar in abundance. In June the days are long enough that the bees can fly for 14 to 16 hours a day, and they are (when it is not raining, bees cannot fly in the rain).

A week or two ago Greg Drake called and asked if I wanted to help him catch a wild swarm that someone had called him about removing. Talk about excited!! I felt like a kid again! So went out to Sugar Grove and caught a wild swarm. It was relatively easy. The bees were on a large fence post right next to the ground. We were there about 20 minutes, and that is counting all the talking we had to do with the people that lived there. I will post some pics of "The Wild Swarm" as soon as I get them from Greg. I have to say that I feel confident enough to go catch one by myself now. I got to keep the bees too, which was an added bonus that I wasn't expecting. I was just along for the learning experience, but hey, I will take the bees too! I took the bees home got my hive and stuff together to put them in just to see that I didn't have a lid for my extra hive. So I built a temporary lid real quick and was ready to go. When you see the pics of the swarm install you will also notice that My hive bottom board is not painted either, well YOU CAN'T EXPECT ME TO REMEMBER EVERYTHING! But I have two so I went ahead and used an unpainted one and have now painted the extra one, so next time I go check them I will switch out the bottom boards. I checked these bees six days after we installed them and they had already made four frames of honey comb and the queen had already started laying eggs! That is more than my first two hive did in three weeks! So I've got big hopes for this hive. Also, for future reference this hive is not at my house with my first two hive, it is @ my parents house. My Brother and Mother are interested in getting some hives next year.

Here are some pics of Lindsey helping me install "The Wild Swarm". Notice her very stylish beekeeping boots!

Lindsey dumping bees into the hive



Lindsey checkin' it out




That's alotta free-bees! (get it...freebies, free-bees)



That is honey comb that the bees built on the top of the box we caught them in. They were only in that box like three hours!!

That is one HOT beekeeper right there!

Thursday, April 16, 2009

The Break In

I finally got to break into my bee hives this evening, two days longer than I expected. Everything looked great! The queens were out of their cages, and the bees are pulling comb. They drank almost a quart and a half of sugar water today per hive! Before long they will have some comb completed and the queen can start laying.
My wife Lindsey has had a change of heart and has taken interest in the bees. She went out with me this evening and helped me. She actually spotted the queen in both of the hives. She was excited to have spotted them out of all the of the other bees and I was excited that my queens were alive and well. After watching me smoke the first hive Lindsey wanted to do the second one. She took the smoker and smoked the hive just like a pro! I am sooo happy that she has taken an interest. I know I have promised some pics of install day, and I will get them up before long!

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Can't Hardly Wait

It has been three days since I have installed my bees into hives. The third day is usually the day that the beekeeper should fire up his smoker and break into the new hives to see how everything is going. Not me, not today. It is cloudy, a little cool, and has been misting rain. Not good weather for breaking open a new hive, or any hives for that matter. Maybe tomorrow...cross your fingers! I was so excited too! I can't wait to get in there and see if the queen has been freed and also to see if they are drawing comb (making honeycomb to store honey and for the queen to lay eggs in). I am also ready to get in there to test the two hives different personalities. The day I installed I took note of some different stuff and kinda made a mental note that I thought the first hive is the weaker hive an the second hive is the stronger. I am unsure which has the more aggressive attitude. I initially thought that the stronger would be the more aggressive one, but I am not sure after a couple from the first hive buzzed my head while I was observing from about 10 ft away Sunday (without protective equipment on). I went out yesterday to check the bees sugar water and I found something I wasn't expecting. The first hive had drank 3/4 of a quart jar in about 24 hrs, and the second hive had only drank about 1/4 of a quart jar. Hmmmm? I am thinking that the second hive maybe a little bigger and is out
foraging and finding plenty of food therefore they are not having to drink as much sugar water as the first hive. That thought satisfied me. This morning before work I went out and gave the first hive a full quart. This evening I went out to check their water and the second hives hadn't moved a whole lot and the first have had drank about 1/4 of theirs. There was only a handful of bees outside either hive, like five to ten at any given time. I noticed that one of the bees left the first hive and flew to the second hive. Interesting. Then I saw one leave the second hive and fly to the first hive. It landed right by the sugar water feeder and walked right in! I watched this for a couple minutes. I just wonder if the second hive is "robbing" the first hive's sugar water? Surely not, they both have plenty right in their front door. I can't wait to get in to them tomorrow to see what is going on inside those boxes!! Also, I don't REALLY know which one is stronger which one is weaker, those are just initial first impressions from an amateur beekeeper.

I will upload some pics of Jordan and I installing my bees later. I know you guys want to see them and I was going to upload them with this post but blogger is being sloooooowww today, sorry!

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Bee Field day

Saturday April 4 was the last meeting of the Butler/Warren Co. bee keepers class. It was Such a beautiful day outside, perfect weather! I didn't know Plano (in Warren Co.) was such a nice place. After being there for the field day I actually told Lindsey that if we ever have to move back to BG I would like to live there. It was a very hands on class, they showed us how to introduce bees into a hive and how to check an already established colony. A big two thumbs up and a round of applause for Greg Drake and Carol Schrieber. They did an excellent job teaching us wanna-be bee keepers what to do and how to do it! Here are some pics...


This is me and another guy lighting our smokers. We had a smoker lighting contest to see whose could stay lit the longest. I tied with someone else for the longest burning smoker, won a little prize, YEA ME!





Checking out some old honey comb. This is not actually "honey" comb, it is brood comb. The brood comb is usually found in the lower part of the hive. It is where the queen bee lays eggs and it is the part of the beehive where new brood is raised by the colony.



I don't remember this next guys name...but he is ok in my book!



Here are three pics. The first is of a package of bees and then the next two is of Carol preparing to get the packaged bees out and into a hive. The second pic is of Carol pouring some water on the bees so that they ball up in the package and are less likely to swarm out of the box. The last of the three is Carol dumping the bees into the hive. It sounds really crazy, and goes against all natural instinct (and what you would think of as common sense, for that matter) But the way you get the bees out of the box is you pour water on them, open a hole in the top, turn them upside down, and literally beat on the bottom to dump the bees in the hive. Then the ones that don't come out that way, you shake the box till they fall out! Never in my life would I have thought it was a good idea to take bees that have been in a box for at least a couple of days, open the box, then turn it upside down so I could beat on the bottom of it...wanting them to come out. Defies everything we ever learned growing up doesn't it?









Here are just some random pics of the hives and us standing around the hives.




























Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Too busy...

Sorry I haven't posted in so long, but I have been super busy! Last week I was in Ft. Mitchell, Ky doing a training class for work and this week I am going to St. Louis! And all my other spare time I am in church or working on some remodeling Lindsey has talked me in to doing or trying to get my bee hives built. That means (being the male that I am) that I have about three or four projects started and none finished. C'mon I can't be the only guy that does that! Anyways, I have got all my hive boxes built and painted so I hope to get some pics on here when I get back from St Louis. I have a lot more to write about but no time right now!!! This little message was just to let everybody know that when I slow down a little I will get you guys caught up! Just a reminder, April 11 is the bee arrival day and I am definitely going to post pics of me putting my bees in to their new home!

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Rainy Saturday Testimonial

Rain, rain, GO AWAY! Man, this weather makes me lazy, er, lazier. Not much going on with me right now. Still building bee hives. It has been a week since I picked them up and I am still not finished, and it is not for lack of trying!

I did get some good news this week...I am going to be an uncle!! I have never been an uncle before, it kinda makes me feel old, all my uncles are old. That was kinda random, huh? Anyways, Lindsey's older sister Jamie is going to have a little girl, and Lindsey has been visiting them in Louisville this week.

Other than that nothing is really going on.

But, I have had this song in my head for days so I think I will share the words w/ you guys. Most of you that read this blog will never have heard it, but it has been in my head over and over and over this week. I guess it kinda hits home with me because of what the Lord has done for me, and I want to go on with him. I am grateful for the lifestyle the Lord brought me out of, and I want to live the rest of my life in such a way that is pleasing to him. I want to live my life in such a way that I am an acceptable sacrifice to the Lord.
Romans chapter 12 verses 1 & 2 says:
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies and living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
I could give my testimony now, but I am not going to give it all. I don't feel that it is time to share that all of it. I will share that the Lord delivered me from a loose lifestyle and a deadly drug addiction. I had to humble myself and ask for his help, but when I did, he delivered! Not immediately, but he delivered.
Psalms 116 says : I love the Lord, because he hath heard my voice and my supplications. Because he hath inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon him as long as I live.
The Lord heard little ole me, a drug addicted nobody, and changed my life! HALLELUJAH! Now, I will say this, I didn't just ask for help and then continue living however. I asked for help, and continued to seek God's will in my life. I wanted to change, and God used my willing heart, to perform a miracle that is visible to me and to all that knew me or about me.
Well, I have went on longer than I intended too on this topic, But I love to tell people about the mercy and grace of God!! And I am always willing to go into detailed conversation about my experience and how looking back I can see God's hand in my life, if anyone wants to talk about it. I have spoke at the jail and testified about it in several churches, I am not ashamed. No, I am ashamed of the things I did, NOT the things the Lord did for me.

Here are the lyrics to that song..

It's My Desire Lord
It's my desire Lord; to help someone today,
someone who may have failed to see God's way.
I too was so lost,
But now I'm found,
and it's desire to live for Him.
Chorus
If you could see where Jesus brought me from
to where I am right now,
then you would know the reason why I love Him so.
you can take this worlds wealth and riches,
I don't need them now.
It's my desire, to live for him
It's my desire Lord to work for you today,
to never fail to see your perfect way,
sometimes the road is rough,
But I'll keep my goal in view.
And it's my desire to be like You.
Chorus
Now, it's my desire to see your face someday,
to worship at your feet eternally.
Lord I will do my best to live like you each day,
and it is my desire to be like You!
Chorus 2x
Note: I did not write this song!

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Bee Hives Have Arrived!!

Today was bee hive pick-up day....YEAAA! I already knew everything I wanted because I have been reading up, and I have a 2009 Kelley's catalogue, with every page marked that has something on it that I will need, and expect to buy. So here we go to clarkson @ 8am this morning (early Saturday mornings...BLAH! New bee stuff...YEEAA! So it kinda evened out). By we I mean Me, my marked up Kelley's book, and my Momma. Aren't Mommas good company? That and I the fact I knew she would be up that early on a Saturday morning anyway! All turned out well, except for the fact that I spent about a hundred more dollars than I was expecting too. The thing is when they read the list back off to me before I payed, I totally agreed that everything that they read off I NEEDED! I think the extra hundred came from some little upgrades and things that I overlooked, like extra nails (bee hives take allot of nails!) wire for my frame foundations (what bees make the honeycomb on), also I upgraded my hat and jacket to a material that is more lightweight and will be cooler during months like July and august. It is not like they were talking me into buying stuff and I was just falling for it! They told me things that were necessities. You know, things that being a beginner I overlooked, and the upgrade was my Idea. All this is a one time investment anyways,might as well do it right.


I got all my stuff home and assembled part of one of my hives. The reason I did not do more is because Linz had asked me to do some stuff around the house and outside in the yard for her, so I wanted to get that done (being the good husband that I am). Also the assembly and painting of my two hives are going to take all my spare time for at least the next week and that is too long to wait to get the things done that she asked of me, plus it is beautiful outside today! Perfect day for golfing....but that is another post. One more reason that I wanted to get that stuff done for her is because she works on Saturdays, and she is going to die when she comes home and all of this bee stuff is piled up in our living room!!!

The funny thing is....that is not even all of it. Okay, this is classic Jarrod right here. I was at the loading dock @ Kelley's, along with some other people. The lady brought out my stuff sat it of the dolly and said something like here's yours, or here ya go. so I loaded up my stuff in my truck and took off. Well I got home and started assembling some of it and my cell phone rings. It was Mary, the sales lady that I had been working with @ Kelley's. She was like Jarrod you forgot some of you stuff. Sure enough I had! You got to give me credit though, I mean I am a beginner, I was a little excited, and that is allot of stuff already. I guess they have to more big boxes for me set aside that I have to go pick-up sometime this week.

That's it for now. It is too nice outside to be in front of the computer!!

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Busy Busy Blogger

Busy busy busy, that's me lately! But I have been busy doing stuff that I want to do, not stuff I have to do. That makes it better. It just seems like I am going somewhere all the time.

I just got through eating a delicious supper that my wonderful wife cooked (that should get me some brownie points). No really it was DEE-LISH! Dinner has been put away, she is making strawberry jam, and I am going to catch up on my blogging. AHHH, My favorite chair; COMFY!!

When she gets done with the jam I think we are going to have movie night, either Prince Caspian or Fireproof. I will probably stay in my chair the whole time!! it is good to have a night @ home. It is the only one this week.

My weekend excursion...

Friday night I got to go see Selah perform @ Brentwood baptist church in Brentwood, TN. For those of you who don't know about Brentwood, that is where all the country music singers live. Pretty ritzy place. It is south of Nashville, I think it took Me and Linz about an hour and a half to get there. This church was the biggest church I have ever been in! It reminded me of an airport terminal when I first went in because of the big hallways to the left and right. HUGE!!! There were probably between 1000 and 1250 people in the audience and by my guesstimation it probably could have held a total of 2500 people. HUGE!!! I mean Hillview Heights and Living Hope churches in Bowling Green have nothing on this place. HUGE!!! Here is a scale replica of the church.


I found this while wondering around one of the "airport hanger" hallways. I know you can't really get a good idea of the actual size of this place but think about this, the area in the middle with the silver around is the sanctuary, so if it holds 2-3000 people. Yeah, like I said HUGE!!!


Now for Selah. I won't spend much time on it other than to say the were great!!! WOW!!! Only the best voices I have ever heard. What is really amazing is that they use their voices to edify the Lord. Sure they make money @ it, the Lord has blessed them. If you have never heard Selah go and buy one of their Cd's, or message me and I will let you hear one of mine. The concert was a fundraiser for the Hope Clinic for women (which I talked about and left a link for in a previous post so I am not going to go into detail about here). I am going to post one pic from the concert.


The guy you can barely see in the back left is their piano player/backup singer (he played the fire out of that piano!) The lady standing up is one lead singer don't remember her name), the guy on right is another lead singer (his name is Todd), and the girl in the middle is Todd's wife, her name is Angie. got it?? The wife is not a singer. OK now that we have that straight. Angie writes a little blog you may have heard of called Bring The Rain. About a year ago Todd and Angie found out that they were going to have a baby, then well into the pregnancy they found out something was wrong with the baby and it would not live but a couple minutes once it had been delivered. (for the fully story as written by Angie read this) That is how they got in with the Hope clinic for women, because Angie and Todd wanted to help women that are pregnant and need help. Women that want to keep their babies but with out a place like the Hope Clinic may have to abort, and counseling for those that have had to make that decision. Anyways that is how they got hooked up with the hope clinic, and the whole reason for the concert, it was a fundraiser. The concert was great, and the money went to a good cause, and we got to sing praises to the Lord with our fave group! We are so blessed to be able to spend our extra time doing things like this. That was Friday night. Friday night is always church night for us in Oboro, but we made an exception this Friday night.

I will post about the rest of the weekend later, I still have Saturday and Sunday to tell you about!! Linz is ready to watch a movie. I think we are going to watch some of season 5 of Friends instead of one of those movies. We are working our way through the series.

Oh I almost forgot! Since this is my Bee Blog and all. I am going to pick up my bee hives Saturday. This is about two weeks earlier than I had planned on, but I am going to be gone from March 22 to April 3. My Bee pick-up date is April 11, so I want to make sure I have enough time to assemble my hives. Trust me it is not just a day long project to put those things together. Wish Me Luck!!! I plan on posting pics as I do construction.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

sorry guys!

SOOOOOOO sorry I haven't posted this week yet! It seems like I am super busy, and I just haven't had time! But I promise as soon as I get time I am going to sit down and write about last weekend, I got lotsa pics and a couple stories, especially about the Selah concert, and my sis-in-law's baptism. Right now I am at work so I can't write alot. I think I need to slow my life down some. Do any of you guys ever think you take on too much STUFF?

Saturday, February 28, 2009

well....it gave ME a laugh...

I wanna share a funny email I got this morning. A good laugh first thing in the morning just helps the day along, and this one sure gave me a chuckle.

The Man Rules
At last a guy has taken the time to write this all down

Finally , the guys' side of the story. ( I must admit, it's pretty good.) We always hear " the rules "From the female side.

Now here are the rules from the male side.
These are our rules! Please note.. these are all numbered "1 " ON PURPOSE!
1. Men are NOT mind readers.
1. Learn to work the toilet seat.You're a big girl. If it's up, put it down.We need it up, you need it down.You don't hear us complaining about you leaving it down.
1. Sunday sports It's like the full moon or the changing of the tides.Let it be.
1. Shopping is NOT a sport.And no, we are never going to think of it that way.
1. Crying is blackmail.
1. Ask for what you want. Let us be clear on this one: Subtle hints do not work!Strong hints do not work!Obvious hints do not work!Just say it!
1. Yes and No are perfectly acceptable answers to almost every question.
1. Come to us with a problem only if you want help solving it. That's what we do. Sympathy is what your girlfriends are for.
1. Anything we said 6 months ago is inadmissible in an argument. In fact, all comments become Null and void after 7 Days.
1. If you think you're fat, you probably are. Don't ask us.
1. If something we said can be interpreted two ways and one of the ways makes you sad or angry, we meant the other one
1. You can either ask us to do something Or tell us how you want it done. Not both..If you already know best how to do it, just do it yourself.
1. Whenever possible, Please say WHATEVER you have to say during commercials..
1. Christopher Columbus did NOT need directions and neither do we.
1. ALL men see in only 16 colors, like Windows default settings.Peach, for example, is a fruit, not A color. Pumpkin is also a fruit. We have no idea what mauve is..
1. If it itches, it will be scratched. We do that.
1. If we ask what is wrong and you say "nothing," We will act like nothings wrong. We know you are lying, but it is just not worth the hassle.
1. If you ask a question you don't want an answer to, Expect an answer you don't want to hear.
1. When we have to go somewhere, absolutely anything you wear is fine... Really .
1. Don't ask us what we're thinking about unless you are prepared to discuss such topics as BASEBALL, Football or golf.
1. You have enough clothes.
1. You have too many shoes.
1. I am in shape. Round IS a shape!
1. Thank you for reading this.Yes, I know, I have to sleep on the couch tonight; But did you know men really don't mind that? It's like camping.

Friday, February 27, 2009

Excitement & A Discovery!

If you have never heard of the band Selah, well all I can say is you need to get in the know! They are only mine and my wives absolute favorite gospel group! I have to say they have the some of the best voices around! Want to know more about Selah? Checkout their website.
Like I was saying, they are only my fave gospel group....AND I GET TO SEE THEM PERFORM LIVE TONITE!!!!!!!!!!!! They never perform locally, So when I heard that they were doing a benefit concert for the Hope Clinic at Brentwood Baptist Church in Tennessee, I pounced on the opportunity. So me and Linz have a date night planned. she bought a new black dress (which looks she absolutely amazing in!), and I am going to dress nice, we are going to go out to eat and then on to the concert. Is there a better time to be had anywhere? I am going to get to spend quality time with my wife, eat good food, and see my fave group sing praises to the Lord! And you better believe I am going to be singing along....I love to sing praises to Jesus and his Father!

That was the excitement, now for the discovery...

I discovered last night, from my Auntie Bill, that my great-grandfather was a beekeeper!!! Can you believe that?????? I practically have beekeeping in my blood!! I am going to do some research and see if I can't find an old picture or something. That would be too cool to have a pic of my great grandfather with his bee hives!! I will post more about this discovery later, along with a story my aunt told me that she remembers about him and his hives.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

An interesting Email

I got an email the other day that I want to share with you guys. The last line, when it reveals who the student was that was talking, is meant to be the real catcher. I think what was said is more important and more of a catcher than who said it! Soooo I think I am going to just leave off the last line and if you really want to know who the student was you can email me or something. Also another reason I am going to delete who the student was is because I DON'T KNOW IF THAT PERSON REALLY SAID ALL THIS! I got this as an email and emails aren't always 100% reliable. So since I did not want to research it I took it out. Also, I cut and pasted this straight from my inbox, so don't hold any grammar or punctuation mistakes against me!

......

'Let me explain the problem science has with religion.' The atheist professor of philosophy pauses before his class and then asks one of his new students to stand.'You're a Christian, aren't you, son?''Yes sir,' the student says.'So you believe in God?''Absolutely.''Is God good?''Sure! God's good.''Is God all-powerful? Can God do anything?''Yes.''Are you good or evil?''The Bible says I'm evil.'The professor grins knowingly. 'Aha! The Bible!'He considers for a moment, 'Here's one for you. Let's say there's a sick person over here and you can cure him. You can do it. Would you help him? Would you try? ''Yes sir, I would. ''So you're good! ''I wouldn't say that. ''But why not say that? You'd help a sick and maimed person if you could. Most of us would if we could. But God doesn't.' The student does not answer,so the professor continues. 'He doesn't, does he? My brother was a Christian who died of cancer, even though he prayed to Jesus to heal him. How is thisJesus good? Hmmm? Can you answer that one?' The student remains silent. 'No, you can't, can you?' the professor says. He takes a sip of water from a glass on his desk to give the student time to relax. 'Let's start again, young fella. Is God good? ''Er...yes,' the student says.'Is Satan good? 'The student doesn't hesitate on this one, 'No.''Then where does Satan come from?'The student falters, 'From God. ''That's right. God made Satan, didn't he? Tell me, son. Is there evil in this world? ''Yes, sir...'' Evil's everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything, correct?''Yes.''So who created evil?" The professor continued, 'If God created everything, then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to the principle that our works define who we are, then God is evil.' Again, the student has no answer. 'Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things, do they exist in this world?' The student squirms on his feet. 'Yes.' 'So who created them?' The student does not answer again, so the professor repeats his question, 'Who created them?' There is still no answer.... Suddenly the lecturer breaks away to pace in front of the classroom. The class is mesmerized.'Tell me,' he continues onto another student. 'Do you believe in Jesus Christ, son?' The student's voice betrays him and cracks. 'Yes, professor, I do.' The old man stops pacing, 'Science says you have five senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen Jesus?''No sir. I've never seen Him.''Have you ever felt your Jesus, tasted your Jesus or smelt your Jesus? Have you ever had any sensory perception of Jesus Christ, or God for that matter?''No, sir, I'm afraid I haven't.''Yet you still believe in him?''Yes.''According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your God doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?''Nothing,' the student replies. 'I only have my faith.''Yes, faith,' the professor repeats. 'And that is the problem science has with God. There is no evidence, only faith.'The student stands quietly for a moment, before asking a question of His own. 'Professor, is there such thing as heat?''Yes,' the professor replies. 'There's heat.''And is there such a thing as cold?''Yes, son, there's cold too.''No sir, there isn't.'The professor turns to face the student, obviously interested. The room suddenly becomes very quiet.The student begins to explain...'You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super-heat, mega-heat, unlimited heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat, but we don't have anything called 'cold'. We can hit up to 458 degrees below zero, which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold; otherwise we would be able to go colder than the lowest -458 degrees.''Everybody or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-458 F) is the total absence of heat. You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat we can measure in thermal units because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.'Silence across the room. A pen drops somewhere in the classroom, sounding like a hammer.'What about darkness, professor. Is there such a thing as darkness?''Yes,' the professor replies without hesitation. 'What is night if it isn't darkness?''You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is not something; it is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light, but if you have no light constantly you have nothing and its called darkness, isn't it? That's the meaning we use to define the word. In reality, darkness isn't. If it were, you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?'The professor begins to smile at the student in front of him. This will be a good semester. 'So what point are you making, young man?''Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is flawed to start with, and so your conclusion must also be flawed.'The professor's face cannot hide his surprise this time, 'Flawed? Can you explain how?''You are working on the premise of duality,' the student explains...'You argue that there is life and then there's death; a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science can't even explain a thought.' 'It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it...''Now tell me, professor. Do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?''If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young man, yes, of course I do.''Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?'The professor begins to shake his head, still smiling, as he realizes where the argument is going. A very good semester, indeed.'Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you now not a scientist, but a preacher?'The class is in uproar. The student remains silent until the commotion has subsided.'To continue the point you were making earlier to the other student, let me give you an example of what I mean.' The student looks around the room, 'Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the professor's brain?' The class breaks out into laughter.'Is there anyone here who has ever heard the professor's brain, felt the professor's brain, touched or smelt the professor's brain? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science says that you have no brain, with all due respect, sir.''So if science says you have no brain, how can we trust your lectures, sir?'Now the room is silent. The professor just stares at the student, his face unreadable. Finally, after what seems an eternity, the old man answers, 'I guess you'll have to take them on faith.''Now, you accept that there is faith, and, in fact, faith exists with life,'the student continues, 'Now, sir, is there such a thing as evil?'Now uncertain, the professor responds, 'Of course, there is. We see it everyday. It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man. It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil. 'To this the student replied, 'Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat or the darkness that comes when there is no light.

The professor sat down.

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

How I got interested...

One day last spring someone came in the courthouse where I work and said that there were a swarm of bees on a pillar in front of City Hall. City Hall is across the street from my office so I looked out there and WOW! The pole was black instead of the normal reddish brown color! And the air was full of black dots zipping around. The curious thing to me was that all the bees were in such a concentrated area. I had to get a closer look! By this time a small crowd had gathered, so I walked down the lawn and across the street, still within a safe distance of course!





By the time I got my camera and got down there the resident swarm catchers (Bobby Mckee & Greg Drake) had already surveyed the situation and started catching the bees. This is what sparked my interest. I mean I had heard of people handling bees, but that was just a myth...right? Nope! As I became more and more intrigued, I began to ask questions. Like why is the bees concentrated in one spot? I found out that bees want to stay close to the queen, that is why they are crawling all over each other on that pole, they are trying to stay close to the queen.


That really led to the answer of another question how are you catch them/get them to go into that box?? Well once again the answer was The Queen. What happened was that Bobby Mckee found the queen in the swarm (finding ONE particular bee in the middle of all those bees, you got to be kidding me!! Like much other aspects of beekeeping it is more of an art than a science) and once he found her he gently placed her in the box. That is all it took, then the bees slowly started making their way to their queen. To say that a person will get every single bee in the box this way is an overstatement. A few stragglers will just have to be left behind.

Being able to see someone handle and manipulate those bees like that...I mean come on that is just too cool! I had to learn how to do that!! So I guess you could say it was love @ first sight! If you would like to know why honey bees swarm check this out.

Monday, February 16, 2009

First Post!

Well I am finally doing it...I am blogging!
This is one of two firsts for me. The other first is the reason I started this blog, Honey Bees. Yes...Bees! Being a bee keeper is my NEW hobby, and I wanted a way to document my adventure, with this I can do more than document it, I can share it with the whole world! Isn't technology great?!!
For those of you who don't know me...
My name is Jarrod Evans, I am 27 years old, and I am very happily married to Lindsey Bunch Evans, she is 23, she is a nursing student, and she is currently Employed @ the Butler County Library. I grew up in Butler County KY, and I still live here (but I have lived other places). I work for the Butler County Property Valuation Administator, or if I wanted to sound important I could say that I am the GIS Coordinator for Butler County Division of the Kentucky Dept. of Revenue, we all have fancy titles for our jobs I'm sure, just in case...don't we? Oh, and in case you don't know what GIS is I think it would be easier for you to look it up on wikipedia than for me to try to explain it! I have two kids, a boy and a girl. They are both adopted. Baby Rae is the girl and she is 9 yrs old, Memphis Jones is the boy and he is 4yrs old. Baby is a shepherd mix and Memphis is just an ole' alley cat.

I said that it is my new hobby when in all truth I think this is actually my only hobby. I guess that is weird, ya know, me being 27 and this being my only hobby. I mean there are other things that I enjoy and things that I do often, but this is different. I like to cook and I like to travel (I have already been to Phoenix, AZ this year!! I will post some pics of that later), I'm always wanting to try new restaurants in different cities, and I absolutely love going to church. Going to church is not really something to list with all the those other things, because being a christian is a lifestyle! Not something that you just do sometimes, praising God should not only be done while @ church but I want to live my life so that it is a sweet savor to the Lord, not just while out in public but also behind closed doors. WOW guess I kinda got on a soap box there, I guess I could devote some posts to that later....
All those things I listed (and there are some others) are things I enjoy, but this bee thing, this is different. I have bought books, studied, went to some seminars, I am taking a class, and I have joined a bee club. That other stuff is casual, stuff that I do when I get time (not the church thing) and the money, But this; I am saving my money and I am making time! Anyways I am really excited, and I know that I probably sound like a geek...yeah I sound like a geek! But oh well.

This is how far I have got with my project so far:
  1. I have already ordered my honey bees. They arrive @ Kelley's Bee Co. April 11. I ordered two swarms. A swarm = 3lbs of bees. If anybody can tell me how much a single honey bee weighs I would be grateful!!
  2. I have picked a day (March 14) to go pick up my supplies. That way I can have everything assembled and ready by April 11.

Like I have already said, I am taking a class through the Butler County Extension office. Greg Drake and a lady from Warren County are teaching it. They are both beekeepers w/ multiple hives and they are excellent teachers!! We meet twice a month, the next class in the 26th of this month, and I think there are four more classes after that. I am not going to jump into this all stupid like, with no information or training!! Have you ever got stung by a bee? Yeah! Don't feel good does it! So I am empowering myself with all the knowledge I can get before I have to dump two swarms of bees out of a wire mesh box into hives. They say knowledge is power.

Well this is it, my first entry. I've covered the reason I started this blog thing, but I have a feeling I am going to end up posting about alot more than my bee adventure!

 
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