Monday, July 14, 2008

The Girls

Jerry and Dan went to Jaffe's farm to pick up the remainder of Jerry's hives. They have to do it at night so that the bees are "home". Otherwise, it's like moving their home out from under them while they're out foraging. Imagine coming home after out polinating all day and finding your hive gone? That would be cruel I think. So, he and Dan went down to the farm tonight,at 9:30 PM. to tie up the hives and bring them up. Allison and Jennie and I elected to remain at home. I don't know if Jennie is as afraid of bees as I am, but she wasn't signing up for the move either. We wait here patiently, Bee Widows, for the boys to do their thing. It is kind of funny that we think of ourselves as being left behind, because the truth is I wouldn't go near the damn things anyway. But when the Bee Guys get together they talk about their "girls" as if they were woman. I realize how really absurd it is to be jealous of bees. I mean really. However, he speaks of them with such fondness that I find myself being irritated at their constant availability and allure. Do we need to check on them twice a day? What could they possibly have that I don't? What's the deal? I think it is the pull of nature that brings Jerry to the bees. He enjoys the solitude in the field, and the possibility of a magnificent honey harvest. You can tweak the position of the hives and make improvements, all while the bees are doing their job. In alot of ways, I'm sure he feels in control of the whole bee situation (with the exception of the bear crisis of a few months ago). They are doing their job, they are potentially profitable, and they don't talk back or get sarcastic. If they are in a bad mood, you just smoke them a little more. If I were smoking I could be pleasant and productive too. I've been off cigarettes for 17 months. I am still bitchy - I'll admit it. It's just something I can't do if I want to live to see tomorrow. The bees can inhale all they want, and it calms them down. So that makes them better company than me? I resent it. When he say's "I'm going to see the girls" I am jealous. Maybe he too is breathing in the smoke of the sage. They're all out there "smoking" together in the woods. How intimate. It drives me crazy. I just don't like it. Sometimes when we're doing something, he'll just disappear for awhile. Like mowing the lawn. All of a sudden I'll realize Jerry is gone. I can't hear the mower and I can't find Jerry. I couldn't have been more suspicious than if it were another woman. It's just 50,000 other women! All of them busy at work and keeping their mouths shut. Smoking. I find myself looking forward to winter when they are dormant. Then I might win this battle for his attention. I could be overreacting a tad, really. But who can blame me? As I said before, I'm rooting for the bears.

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