I have no idea if this is Indian Summer, late Summer, or a mild Autumn. Such labels apply here less than ever it seems. But the bees in our first backyard hive have really ramped up their honey production this last month or so, mostly from “flute-plant” (knot-weed, which I thought my apiarist mentor David Newman meant as “not weed” lol). We got a bounteous 35 lbs. out of the top 8-frame super, and a huge disk of wax that Mer will be turning into waxed cloth to use as reusable wax paper.
We also made shadow boxes for the Ritchies and Judi Kulbacki containing a vial and of honey and candle of beeswax from the harvest of their respective hives. We plan to make one for ourselves shortly. Maybe in a thousand years, some scientists will be analyzing them to learn about the pollen from this time and place. But for now, a meaningful keepsake.
On another note, I had a great idea — getting a group together to go dancing down the street for a kilometer or so, bringing fun to ourselves and the neighborhood. When I expressed this to my daughter, she informed me there was already a group doing this in Buffalo. So I joined (on Facebook and in the streets) the Buffalo Joywalkers. Where was this all my life?
So a few weeks ago I showed up near Allentown and the handful of those who could make it strolled to music into Allentown, stopping at places now and then to just groove. We spent the most time in front of what was once Topic Cafe, my favorite stomping grounds back in the 90s (across from the Pink, now known as “The Old Pink”). The music was a bit not-really-dance-music but still familiar (from the 1970s) and fun. People came out of bars to tell us we were having a better time than them so they joined us. A good time, something I hope to do whenever I can. I just hope there’s some Hip Hop and techno thrown in …