From A to Bee(40)

I am determined, next week I must pick up a bee, even if it does turn around, shout out that I am trapping its leg and then proceed to sting me. I need to get it out of the way sometime, I suppose.



All in all it was a great session and one really worth going to.





MAY 28





People have many traits that they take from their parents. I am fortunate to have picked up the best sides of both parents and am pretty laid back, quite decisive and a relatively good communicator (or so I am told). However, one of my many faults is impatience. Now I am about to pay for it.



At the start of the week I felt it would be a busy week, and I wasn't wrong. I hadn't heard anything about the nucleus and the rumour mill was suggesting the first week of June, contrary to what the guy had told me. So, having become excited and given my box away to catch a swarm on Wednesday, which was apparently imminent, I received a phone call today to say that my nucleus was ready to be picked up. How typical and how completely ironic. This leaves me in a position of having some bees but now I have no hive, a complete turnaround on the last few months.



In my head I had calculated that I could give away my brood box to catch a swarm and in the meantime receive delivery of the Beehaus. I would then transfer the bees from the nucleus to the Beehaus instead – perfect, I thought. In fact, having talked to Omlet today I now realise this is a pipe dream. It is not due to arrive at Omlet until the end of next week as there have been some last-minute modifications, which they want to update before giving me the hive. My shoulders sagged and I heard my mother's voice saying 'told you so' reverberating around in my head. I have therefore had to pass on the nucleus offered so he can give that one to someone else. I will just have to wait another couple of weeks to get the next round. Hopefully by that time I will have a swarm safely ensconced in the National hive.



Trying to get a guarantee of bees I have put myself again in a position where nothing is guaranteed! Oh well, let's soldier on and hope that an army of bees is swarming somewhere around Reigate, that a nucleus of bees in Farnham is brewing nicely and that Omlet is confident that the Beehaus is on its way.





MAY 30





Well, today has been a most interesting day.

Sebastian met up with all his mates today and was having a whale of a time just larking about. It is amazing the transition in just twenty months, now seeing the little characters coming out and long-term friendships settling in. At one point, Sebastian walked up to Jo, bottom lip out and quivering. 'Bee' was the word being uttered as his little eyes started to well up a little. Immediately we started to see what the matter was and decided he wasn't just uttering letters of the alphabet at us. We started stripping him off and checking he was OK and sure enough as we removed his arm from a sleeve, a little bumblebee just flew out, completely unharmed. Sebastian very quickly started smiling again, shouting 'Bee!' at the top of his voice and excitedly jumping up and down. After a check, no stings were discovered and we all concluded that the bee had been playing hide and seek for a little while.



We got back home and put Sebastian to sleep and I then asked Jo to help me film my first lighting of the smoker in readiness to put the clip on YouTube; a very piquant moment. I realised I hadn't lit my new smoker yet and felt I had better just test it out. Thankfully, it went very smoothly and lit first time. The smell is something indescribable but already cemented in my memory bank. Jo was impressed, I think, and I felt caveman-like, much like most men do when they light a bonfire.



Our lovely neighbours Jo and Nicky saw me light the smoker and were intrigued and so I popped around and showed them what it was all about. Walking back from their house I received the phone call which was to change my life. It was about 7.30 p.m. by this point and a lovely evening with a few clouds in the sky and a number I didn't recognise popped up on my mobile. As soon as I heard the voice and the name Richard I knew what it was about. Richard – the 'swarm-catcher' for the Reigate area.



This could mean only one thing. Having given my box away on Wednesday to Adam, not only must he have given my box to Richard as he said he would, but he must have a swarm for me. Here was 'the call'.



Apparently some bees had swarmed into a nursing home's garden. Not only that, but they looked like they were Suzy from the beekeeping association's bees, who were swarming for the second time in seventy-two hours. On the Wednesday she mentioned that she had some rather prolific bees swarming, and here they were, ready and waiting for me. It sounds as if they were simply running out of room in her hive and had to get out.



Here I was talking to an experienced beekeeper who was having to deal with all of this late on a Sunday evening and it was quite a surreal, one-sided conversation. It went a little like this: