Very interesting day.
 
 I had been wanting to pull supers, get strips in and add deeps (to
collect fall flow for spring feeding ) for over a week now. However,
other things kept taking priority, the birth of my daughter being most
notable. The post from Dave Green "Here Clyde, Help Me Tamp Down These
Bees" helped convince me that my thoughts on adding the deeps would solve
the problem of treating for mites without losing the fall flow plus
shutting down the queens too early was of some merit.  This added to my
enthusiasm to get started plus the fact that I couldn't wait to see this
years crop up close. So today was to be the day. Bad choice!
 
 Last night thunderstorms moved through the area and this morning was
damp and overcast. as the day progressed it became warm with some
sunshine. Thinking that the bees would be in as good of mood as I was
the first mistake. After preparing all the needed equipment, I opened the
1st hive, this is normally a strong and sometimes aggressive hive as well
as a good producer. Well today they weren't aggressive,  they were HOT, I
mean "Thermo-Nuclear Hot". I got the first sting before I even had the
cover off, but I would not be denied. About 8-9 stings later I had the
1st hive closed up and started to move though the yard (5 more to go). To
make a long story short all the hives were nearly as hot as the 1st. All
told I received approx. 18-20 hard hits and a number of lesser ones
before I started to feel faint and a bit shaky. I managed to get through
5 of the 6 hives before throwing in the towel, better late than never. I
got in the house to a cool shower and 75 mg of Benadryl and waited out
the swelling and the "hives" (makes you wonder how "hives" came to be
called that doesn't it). I also suffered some blurred vision and nausea.
All in all a pretty scary afternoon. So here it is now 8 hours later the
worst of it is over, just some localized pain and swelling and I am
reviewing the lessons of the day.
 
1. Never assume the bees share the same enthusiasm that you do.
2. Never work the bees, work with them.
3. When normally gentle bees are being aggressive, they must have a
reason.
4. Don' t force the issue with them, do it another day rather than risk
serious injury.
 
 Maybe had I let things settle down a bit before moving on from the 1st
hive I would had been fine, but in the painful chaos I was thrown out of
my normally calm and slow moving style and into a hurried frenzy.
 
 I post this for the many other hobbyist and part-times that follow
BEE-L. When we don't keep bees for a living we tend to fit them into
"our" schedule, not the "bees" schedule. This can be a painful and tragic
mistake. Know your bees and take your cues from them. There will be times
that it will not be convenient to work with your bees, but you must be
moldable to their attitudes and timetables. Remember, its their house and
you are an uninvited guest, bee polite!
 
Beekeeping is truly a "Gentle Craft".
 
Tim Damon
Ann Arbor, MI