'Startled Cub'

We have a trap on the premises, people. Installed by the Fabulous people at Michigan's DNR. Right next to infamous 'startled cub' honeybee hives.

I hope this bear cannot read.

This morning the trap had triggered so we peeked in it, couldn't see anything, called the ph number to notify the authorities.  It was a raccoon. A raccoon who feasted on molasses and bacon and doughnuts. A very very smart raccoon.

Will keep you posted in the event that my honey thief returns.

sweet as...

Ladies and Gents, we have honey in the hives.  After last year's poor performance, I decided to give it another go. And we've been coasting along for about a month. 

But this is how I found the hives this morning...

Toppled & tumbled, but luckily not destroyed.  I don't know if I'm overreacting, but just last night I read on Annarbor.com that there were two separate black bear sightings only three miles from my house.  Could this be? a bear?  I don't know what did this, but something else wanted honey. 

So this morning, I put my sexy white suit on - and walked out there, only to find that nothing was broken only disassembled.  And to my surprise, honey.  Honey is in the frames. I scraped three square inches off one foundation to find

I was giggling as I walked back to the house, tasting it all the way. 

It's straining off in the kitchen now.  Beautiful and Delicious!

chocolate pie and a new hobby

There are many other BETTER things I should be doing now instead of blogging. It's my five year old pixie's birthday today. Birthdays do not make themselves around here. Lasagna was requested, and is now baking away in the oven. Chocolate pie was also requested. This is a deviation from the typical cake, and I don't know exactly what the diva means by chocolate pie. So I'm risking it a little with an oreo crust (one whole package of newman oreos food processed with half of a stick of melted butter, baked for 10 min at 400 degrees) filled with Julia Child's MtAoFC chocolate mousse. It's delicious, but let's hope that it passes for her mental version of "chocolate pie".

With all I have to do tonight, I would not simply blog about those normal happenings. I'm writing today to explain that I have started another hobby that I've been wanting to pick up... beekeeping. It fits right in with the rest of the menagerie, fits in metaphorically, but fits in about as far away from the house as possible.

looks like we lost one in transit -
but if there's only one dead stinger out of the 10,000 in there I think we've made out well

Thanks to Carl! With any luck, we should have honey in the fall!