What the h.......?!?!

[Jessaboo]

Here's my tale of woe for the day...

Tonight I went out, as I have done every night for the past 2 weeks at least, and just lifted the lid of the hive to see how much sugar syrup the girls ate today.

Instead of being greeted by my mild mannered workers I was attacked!!!

I know it was all my fault for being complacent and not having protective gear etc. but I can still complain, right?

Took two stings to the side of the face, one on top of the ear, three to the top of my forehead and at least half a dozen to the scalp since the girls managed to dive bomb my hair and get inside my pony tail. Wow. Poor hubby took a hit on the hand and four on the ankle for trying to help me out.

Of course, while trying to get the girls out of my hair those little blood sucking buggers called skeeters took advantage of me and covered my legs with bites so now I hurt and itch.

Really, it is my conscience hurt worst of all since in my "escape" I am sure I crushed quite a few girls on the top of the hive.

I have no idea why they are so hot tonight but of course I am worried about it now.

To top things off, some neighbors of ours stopped by with their 2 and 4 year olds and wanted to know if they could see the hive - I recommended they come back another time... so much for maintaining the "honey bees are harmless" persona. I didn't let on that I'd been stung but gave them a song and dance about evening not being the best time to see the hive since all the bees are home blah blah blah. Should have given that lecture to myself!

And by the way - Denver's Sting Stopper - ain't stoppin' no stings! Fortunately I think I got all the stingers pretty quick except for one of the ones in my scalp - as long as they didn't penetrate thru to my brain I think I'll live!! :)

As my mom-mom used to say, "Oh, poor me."

Thanks for listening.

- Jess

[JP]

Sorry you're in pain, we've all been there before, feel better that you have vented?

Don't forget the smoke next time, all I got to say about that, not trying to kick you when you're down, I promise, its just that every now and then our little girls that we love to put on a pedestal don't always reciprocate our sentiments.

We want to believe they always love us, but sometimes, well, they love to show us their dark side, forgive them, smoke them and give them hugs tomorrow.


...JP

[qa33010]

    Welcome to the 'I knew better but my girls ain't like that' club! :-D

  Sorry you hurt and itch.  Used plantain on my sting yesterday and my daughter last week and it seemed to do good.  Hers was a wasp sting.  Again sorry, but if we learn from anything it should be our mistakes.

[poka-bee]

Jess, mine are taking their guard duties very seriously also..got 1 on the hand the other day.  Used to just go in & look quickly to see if they started on the new super yet..not any more!  Like someone switched em with evil alien bees during the night!  Jody

[TwT]

that's one thing I like about my top feeders, I can take the lid off to check or add syrup or just watch and the gals cant get to me unless they come from the front entrance which they never do.

[tlynn]

Yep, uncharacteristically hit on the hand yesterday just in the vicinity working on a new stand.  Well, we did have a tropical storm coming.  So maybe they were a little agitated.

[annette]

Probably a sign that Fall is coming they are getting more defensive.

[Michael Bush]

There is a reason they sell veils and smokers...

[hankdog1]

bought a new hive off a guy about a month ago left it in the truck overnite.  got up loaded the hive on the mule (ATV) and took it to out to the bee yard.  well i set them up and didn't smoke figured i could open them up and get out of there well well well i was wrong.  welcome to the club though only thing i hate is that the lesson of not using smoke had to be so dang painfull.

[Scadsobees]

Late summer, dearth, heat, robbers (of the apis mellifera type as well as the Americanus stripus stinkus type).  Keep an eye out for scratches or skunk scat, just in case.

Fall isn't the best time to do anything without the veil and smoker nearby.  But I suppose that won't be an issue again :) so I'm preachin' to the choir....

[EasternShore]

Geez!!! I'm glad I'm not the only one who got tagged this week!!! Yesterday I got hit twice, Same story..no smoke,veil or gloves...Silly me...they are protecting their home...and brought out the Colt Desert Eagle!!!!!!!!!! Big Badda boom!

Guess I should have read your post...ah....FIRST!

[bmacior]

Speaking as one who knows, veil and smoker nearby isn't good enough. ;)

[Two Bees]

I know exactly what you mean!!

After making several inspections of the syrup earlier this year, one of my girls just shot out of the hive and nailed me on the top of my head!!  Really shocked me since they had been really tame up to that point.

This past weekend, I just stood behind my hive next to the rear entrance with no problems at all.  Go figure!

I guess they are kinda like a big pet snake................nice and calm most of the time but you always know that they can do some serious damage if they feel like it!

[KONASDAD]

My bees were vsicious yetserday too. I also got a hanging swarm too. They were not viscious!

[Jessaboo]

Thank you all for your sympathy (and scoldings)! I don't know who I would have complained too if y'all weren't here!

You may be happy to hear that I have  barely any swelling at all - I am as fit to go in public as I ever really was. Hope those of you that ALSO got hit yesterday are not feeling it too much. (Maybe it was a special bee vs. human holiday yesterday?)

You will also be happy to hear that after socks, shoes, tucked pants, tucked shirt, gloves, veil and smoker this morning (thank goodness it is cool here in Jersey today) - the girls were as tame as ever. Of course, I went and PO'd them a bit by pulling the hive top feeder etc. to see if anything was going on. They look pretty good. I double checked the feeder and made sure it was extra bee tight. I will give them some more 1/1 today and see how things go.

But I will most def not be getting in without "protection" from here on out!

I specifically want to say thanks for the skunk warning - I have smelled a skunk recently but haven't seen any signs near the hive. Also thanks for the reminder about plantain - something in my brain just goes haywire when you start to get stung. I don't seem to remember anything after the third or fourth sting - including to get away from the hive!!

I won't tell you about my husband's stings last week when he stood in front of the hive holding a stinger in his one hand and a pitcher of sugar syrup in the other. Laughed myself sick over that one. He didn't think it was funny. Guess yesterday was my just desserts!

- Jess

[WhipCityBeeMan]

I noticed my bees are more defensive too.  I had a bout of robbing going on and it is getting cooler here in MA.  I guess we should expect it.  Still you have to love the girls.

[eivindm]

Oh, you gave me good laugh there, Jess! :-)  I guess you learned to dress up first, and take the veil off if not needed, not the opposite around :-) 

I've been surprised by my bees being in a bad mood a couple of times too.  One of my hives always was very calm and nice, and one day they attacked me just as I stopped by the hive.  I'm still not sure why, but I later disovered they had lost their queen, and I guess that made them grumpy...

[Cindi]

Jess, the lessons we learn in life.....I am sorry that you had to learn this one the hard way, and it is a hard way, it is a shocker when they turn evil (hee, hee) like that.  That is one thing that I would never do, I don't care how many people I see work the bees without a veil.  My veil is part of me, anytime and everytime I open up a colony, I know that I have veil protection, even if I know the girls are in a good mood.  Their mood can change in the blink of an eye.  When I have on a veil, I am protected 100%.  I don't care if they sting my hands, legs, whatever, but if they can't get to my head, I feel I can do anything with them.  I don't necessarily always use smoke, I have never found that to be absolutely a must, but the veil....say no more.

Something that I have found out about my bees is:  they don't like the dark blue velcro of my wrist watch.  I have had stings time and again to that part of my arm, I now do not wear the fuzzy wrist watch, I think they think it is a pretty blue bear and attack.  If any part of my body were to be stung, for surely it would be my left wrist, below the band, rather annoying, but I have learned that lesson well.  No arthritis in my left hand, hee, hee.  Remember, always, wear a veil, you can feel like superwoman when this is in place   :shock: ;) :) :) :)  Have the most wonderful and awesome day, love this life.  Cindi

[CBEE]

I pulled honey the other day and suited up due to being in the standard dearth this time of year and its a good thing cause they weren't all to happy with me tearing their home apart.  :shock:Got 2 med supers full which makes me glad  :-D since this hive swarmed at the beggining at our best flow

[reinbeau]

They get defensive this time of year with all that honey they've stored - they know it's time to rob the honey!  :evil: