When I was paid to be an Apiary Inspector my main focus was looking for and identifying diseases and pests of honeybees. I wasn't evaluating honey stores or brood production. Though those things could lead one to look differently or more deeply into what is going on in the hive. From the time I approached a hive w/ smoker and hive tool in hand my mind and eyes were focused on thinking "Is this right?" and listening to my inner small voice when it said "Something isn't right.". And I carry that w/ me to this day.

Inspection is like detective work, or what I imagine detective work to be since I have no detective work training. So maybe it's more like a Trooper or Border Patrol interviewing someone at a traffic stop. Paying attention to whatever is going on which may or may not lead one to delve deeper.

I don't know how many beekeepers there are who probably to this day don't think very highly of me as a beekeeper because I reported to them on the presence or lack of diseases and pests and didn't have much to say to them when they asked about other aspects like, "How did my queen look? Is she in good shape?" when all I could say was "I didn't see your queen. I wasn't looking for your queen. But you have eggs and larvae, so you have a queen."

And then there are those you come up to me at meetings and say, "Remember when you killed my queen?". "Nope.", is what I say. How would I know something like that? They never called me to complain about it.

Beekeepers outpace elephants when it comes to memories. And like most of us and our memories, memories aren't always accurate.

Bottom line is that whenever I do any hive manipulations I am always thinking "Does this seem right? Does this sound right? That doesn't smell good. What is my spidey sense telling me?"

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