By some neighbors I am seen as a lost hillbilly. One asked me why
people like me would live in a place like this (I think she meant
development). I reminded her that being a liberal like herself sometimes
meant doing something about a balanced environment, not just tossing
someone else's money to a government program. She was very surprised to
hear I am a computer network engineer and was "edjmakated". She was
afraid to plant trees because they would attract my bees.
        Other people from the neighborhood stop by to thank me for the good I
am doing for the neighborhood and the local gardens. One neighbor was
stung and new I would find out about it, he came over right away to tell
me it was his fault and not to remove any hives.
        I get calls from people to place bees in their backyard to reintroduce
bees to their environment.
        People I meet are very interested to find out I am a beekeeper and
conversation flows that direction for a long time. They've never met a
real live beekeeper before. Some see me as eccentric until I discuss the
necessity of pollination for fruit crop and where do they think honey
comes from.
        Animated conversation and straight answers at festivals attract lots of
attention at local festivals while my wife trades bears for presidents.
I wear my 1/2 suit with my hood tossed back while doing chores in stores
on my way home from a field. The normal reaction is mothers pointing to
me telling the children to "see the beekeeper", and ask me to say hi to
the kids.
        Some see us as a nuisance, some see us as a benefit, nearly all see us
as a curiosity.

Thom Bradley
Chesapeake, VA

Bill Mares wrote:
>
>    I'd love to read a thread about how the general public regards
> bees and beekeepers.