THE FINAL CHAPTER!
Well friends the trapout of a lifetime came to a rewarding conclusion yesterday afternoon.
Now let me tell you about some of the things that happened during this adventure. I have a friend who has two eight frame boxes full of bees with new queens that are filling the frames with eggs and brood who hates me, he no longer looks at me as a true friend. LOL I'm sure each of you has one of these in your life to.....you know the ones I'm talking about, the one who wants you to do every thing for them so they can reap the rewards with no cost of time or labor from them. They will take the fish if you clean them and put them in bags, or better yet even cook them and serve it with all the trimmings, I could go on and on about this type of friend...you get the idea! Yes, I did pack the first 8 frame box in and out for him, you know, like a friend would do for a friend....not even a "thank you" or kiss my grits.
I told him if he would carry the second box to the trapout he could have the bees, OH!....NO PROBLEM! he said, before we got to the tree his first time in it was like a kid on a long road trip....are we there yet!....how much farther! After the hour and fortyfive minute hike with having to stop every 300 yards or so for him to rest he says where are the bees, as I point to nuke 40 foot up the tree all I hear is....WHAT THE !#$# YOU THINK THAT I AM GOING TO CLIMB THAT !#$#ING TREE, YOU MUST BE OUT OF YOU !#$#ING MIND!!!!! WHAT DO YOU EXPECT ME TO DO FLY UP THAT !#$#ING TREE!!! YOU ARE CRAZY AS HELL!!! All of this from a friend whom I was willing to share my once in a lifetime prize with.
As I stood there laughing like a hyena at him I started moving a few limbs to revel my climbing gear, then he let loose with another tyrant of colorful ways to describe me, the bees, the tree, the long hike, how high up the tree, the color to the sky, my mother, his mother, the dog, the price of gas, as well as the bad supper his wife cooked last night was. After tieing one end of a rope around the 8 frame box I proceed to run up the tree.... tie the other end of the rope to the nuke close the screen then remove it and lower it to the ground and pull up his 8 frame box up secure it to the tree that is when the fun began! He decided to remove all the bees that were covering the front and sides of the nuke by dropping it on the ground.....all of this while I was about half way down the tree, oh the sounds that filled the mountains of east central Alabama it was like none that I have ever heard before in my lifetime...it was a combination of the sound of a heard of cows running, a skidder breaking down trees, and the scream of a long tale cat in a room full of rocking chairs with blue haired grannies all rocking on his tale at the same time! :pinkelephant:
Now for all you newbees here is a few words of advice, OLD SPICES will catch the lady in your life with it's smell of the sea but, and this is a big but, it really pee'd those little yellow and black ladies of to no end! My friend and at this point in time I am using the work "friend" loosely, he found out Old Spice after shave and bees are not compatible for comfort but is real good for closeness. These girls left lipstick all over his face and neck the likes of which I have never seen before....roglmao! Friends let me tell you this his inner little girl really came out....not only was it the sound of a heard of cows running, a skidder breaking down trees, and the scream of a long tale cat in a room full of rocking chairs with blue haired grannies all rocking on his tale at the same time, I learned a lot of new words I had never heard before in 72 years! And by the time we made the hike back to my pickup (this time with no rest stops along the way, for some reason he was in a real big hurry) he made it real clear to me he had no interest in this type of adventure everagain.
The next day I dropped by his home to check on him....his face looked like a big fat halloween jack O lantern this was after a trip to the doctor to get a benadryl shot and some advice from his doctor..."be stupid in you life, try it again and see if you get the same results"! LOL He said that he was having difficulty breathing through left side of his nose and while we were talking he kept blowing his nose each time looking in his handkerchief, then after a few more big blows the look on his face when he took a look was priceless.......there in his snotrag was a wet yellow and black gob, you guessed it a honeybee....upon closer inspection he found it had no stinger.....yep, the girl taught him a lesson he will never soon forget....his wife removed the stinger from inside his nose with a qutip.! Bless his pea picking heart he will live!
Total.... 6 five frame nukes and 2 eight frame deep boxes of bees and most important the last cupfull of bees and large black Queen! Which I brought home in my little red and black cricket box to live out the rest of here days in one of my 30 frame double deep long hives.
This is what makes live worthwhile......bees, friends, and laughter even if it is at someone else expense!