Nov 05 2008
remember, remember, …the bees
As part of my birthday treat, I purchased the 45th copy of AFH’s poetry book ‘Of birds and bees’. The book is beautifully illustrated by Jo Thomas. The first line I read was Jo’s introduction to the Bee illustrations:
“In spring 2007 walking, a bee fell, in front of me, on the pavement, dead. I picked it up and drew it. Since then I have continued to collect and draw found and gifted dead bees.”
I’ve not yet seen a dead bee. This summer some beautiful large fluffy bees tended the tea roses at the Wendy house. This may become a treasure of the past as I learn to collect dead bees as memories. At 1pm today the British Bee Keepers Association (BBKA) is coordinating a demonstration In London, Whitehall outside Westminster palace and delivering a petition to Downing street (Prime Minister’s residence). Guidance provided by the BBKA to potential demonstrators includes:
You need to look your best as you may well be on TV! An umbrella probably makes sense too.
They are demonstrating to raise awareness of the impact of the the lack of government funding provided to avert an impending ecological disaster that has clear financial, agricultural implications. According to the Guardian:
Beekeepers have warned that most of the country’s honey bees could be wiped out by disease in 10 years unless an urgent research programme is launched to find new treatments and drugs…
….the Department for Farming, Environment and Rural Affairs revealed that bees contribute £165m a year to the economy through their pollination of fruit trees, field beans and other crops. In addition, the 5,000 tonnes of British honey sold in UK stores generates a further £12m
remember, remember, …the bees
Bees are sapient species of insect from planet Melissa Majoria.
They sensed that Earth would soon be taken over by Daleks so they started
to return home.
This is according to the last series of Doctor Who, so it must be true.
I didn’t see many honeybees this year, plenty of bumblebees though. Last year, honeybees lived in my chimney… Tell a lie, mid-summer I planted up my front garden with lavender and then I had honeybees and butterflies aplenty….
Sx
Plenty of bumblebees this year, though I’ve not persuaded them to use the nest boxes yet.
Honey bees were thin on the ground, though. Which might explain why the cherry tree wasn’t very productive this year.
I love a blog that subtly teases out the spectrum of
geekism that lies within us all. This was surely
destined to lead us down the Doctor Who path.
Even more satisfying, following as it does, the even
more subtle off-pisting towards obscure Hanna-Barbera
characters in an earlier entry!
(http://wendyhome.com/2008/10/11/the-whole-gubbins/#comments)
Flat Eric is on look-out for Daleks and Bees while Im off pisting mainly with Irish coffees and some protesting students (against clause 133)