Tranquil Tuesday: Bees

We had another incredible round of storms this past weekend in Baltimore. Lots of thunder and lightening on Sunday that resulted in a huge branch falling from our maple tree without damaging anything seriously. Afterwards the sun was more golden than ever and I took a little walk in the garden to search for bees.

This time of year our neighbor's bees stop by to ravage our cone flowers that are in peak bloom. 

Aren't they the cutest? I'm dying to get a hive or two in our backyard through the Baltimore Honey organization but for now I will just observe them. I swear watching this video I shot makes my blood pressure go down. Be patient as my focus was off a bit but it is worth the wait.

Isn't he such a gorgeous little dish of a thing?

E. picked up this video for me at our local indy video shop because he knows how much I love bees. Reading The Botany of Desire and anything by Michael Pollan helps feed my love. If we lose our bees, we will lose our food and you know what will happen then. This is another reason why eating organically and staying away from pesticides is so very important. Rent the video. It makes me want to be a Shamantic Bee Keeper. No junk food for my bees. No way. Watch it and you'll know what I'm sayin'. The sad beekeeper alone made me reach for tissues. 

Very thankful that I can see bees visit our yard every year. Are there any Bee Lobbyists out there? I want to make sure this visit will continue for years way after I'm long gone.

Thanks to Ann and Good Neighbor Charlie for making us sign a petition that says we vow to not use pesticides on our lawn. They needed to get all the adjoining neighbors to sign it proving the bees would have a safe and pesticide free space.  They will now get a Baltimore Honey Hive. I can't wait for these little neighbors to move in and to go even greener at Stone Hill. 

My thoughts go out to all of our friends up and down the East Coast who just experienced a 5.9 earthquake over an hour ago. I was driving and it felt like the wheels of the car were about to fall off. They closed the office as we are in the tallest building in Baltimore and colleagues said it felt like a bomb went off. So thankful no one was hurt. Thank you Lord for these little blessings.