New Chapter

I turned off Comments last night when I tried to post this but then, yet again, lost it all by hitting a wrong key. However, Comments will remain off air for the rest of the day!

Why? Because Blip informed me that I was about to post entry 2,755 and thus seven years. I only had a Blipeversarry the other day and really can't claim any justification for yet another.

I did indeed start Bliping seven years ago, on 21st February but there followed several false starts before I settled into a regular pattern. The only reason the numbers almost stack up is that I have backbliped so many pre-2011 photos.

Last night was miserable with quite dreadful pains from the burnt hand - it's the upper left hand between knuckles and wrist. I should really have done the Wiki search for some remedies. I did at least do the first bit right by putting the hand in a bucket of cold water for some time. I could have apparently relieved the pain which lasted hours by simply taking some Ibuprofen.

In fact, I have an arsenal of painkillers - from the same stuff that killed Prince, Fentanyl, to "only" morphine and lots of bottles of an opioid called Tilidine used commonly in Germany and Switzerland.

All long out of date - they were prescribed by my doctor for severe pains I had around 2009/10 and to keep me "quiet" the doses kept increasing and it wasn't long before it became addictive and long after the source of the pain was gone. Luckily my dear friend Nogbad "diagnosed" me over the phone as "going off the rails" on the stuff. How he did it is beyond me but I starting Blip was one of his therapy methods. It must have worked as within a few months, I managed to kick the stuff.

I was lucky to have a friend like Nigel. And of course, I then got to have the Blip community around me and keep me otherwise occupied. Prince, on the other hand, had "friends" who ensured his next fix and death.

Ever since that episode, I have a huge fear of any painkillers. Eventually, after about 4 hours, I managed to get some sleep. In the morning I did Wiki, read I should go to the doctor but I simply didn't have the time and found a DIY solution. It's going to be a painful, unpleasant week though.

Today was forecast to see the end of the week-long summer and would bring thunderstorms in the afternoon. And indeed they passed literally just a few kilometres away. I was too busy preparing my beekeeping equipment to take much notice.

On Saturday MrB had phoned to say he may know someone who can give me a colony and was I still interested? He set up the deal and I agreed with his acquaintance, SebastianB, that I would pick them up this evening at around 8:00 when the girls were going to bed. He said I could have two colonies and at an unbelievably good price, half of what many charge.

So I arrived at the hamlet SebastianB lives in, Stephansried, about 3km from us, as the bee flies.It's the birthplace of Sebastian Kneipp, the priest who became famous internationally for his hydrotherapy natural medical therapy. The hamlet doesn't have any street names, the houses are simply numbered 1, 2, 3 .......

The Blip is taken within a few metres of Kneipp's birthplace and looks down towards SebastianB's house, just out of sight at the bottom of the hill. Luckily the thunderstorms had gone as bees don't like them and get aggressive. And they are generally anyway a bit defensive of their colonies at the moment as they have been hoarding masses of honey this week.

SebastianB turned out to be a great guy and ever so helpful. I had taken along two empty beehives expecting us to do the transfer there and then but he simply said I should take his two hives, let the girls settle into their new surroundings and then transfer them at my leisure and return the empty boxes. He even gave me two layers of boxes for each colony - the ground floor "brood" box and an upstairs "honey store". Nobody would normally do that and further, he insisted I paid even less than agreed "I may be a lousy businessman but you can't make money out of a colleague in an emergency situation".

 A brotherly act - perhaps influenced by him being a close friend of the beekeeper, Father Beda at Ottobeuren's Benedictine Abbey. I got to know and help Father Beda myself a few years ago when I wanted a new queen bee. Father Beda is allergic to bee stings always has to be hermetically "sealed up" when working with them. He wasn't too bothered that on that chance encounter I help out although I only had street clothing and no protective gear whatsoever, not even gloves.

Did get a couple of stings tonight while transporting the hives to and later from the car but they are a lot less painful than the burn.

So now, thanks to MrB and SebastianB, I may be back in the bee business. May even have a jar or two of dandelion honey but the family favourite, especially the grandchildren, is the Honeydew crop in July time. I above all look forward to having the girls buzzing around in the garden.
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