After one year: Who are you?*
March 25th, 2011
Dear Readers,
Today, this little blog has been up for exactly one year.
Many of you have been following our forays into the bee world for quite a while now, and your numbers keep growing. This is great. Thank you!!
When I started this blog, I mainly wanted to share my ongoing wonder about the bees and their keepers and give you an idea of our process of filmmaking. I also saw it as a good way to stay in touch with all the people we meet in the course of the project and to connect with new people who may be interested in bees.
But how about you? After a year of writing for you, I realize that I know hardly anything about you. So I would like to ask: Who are you?
Tell me about you! What has brought you here? What are you doing? What’s your background? Are you a beekeeper? What do you find here that interests you? What else would you like to see?
Please, speak up! The comments are open. We are listening!
Liebe Leserinnen und Leser,
heute ist dieses Blog seit genau einem Jahr online!
Viele von euch folgen unseren Streifzügen in die Bienenwelt schon eine ganze Weile und eure Zahl steigt stetig. Das ist großartig! Vielen Dank.
Ich habe damals angefangen zu bloggen, um mit den Leuten in Kontakt zu bleiben, die uns im Laufe des Projekts begegnen, und um einen kleinen Einblick in die Entstehung des Films zu geben. Vor allem aber wollte ich die Faszination, die Bienen und Imker für mich haben, mit anderen teilen.
Aber was ist mit euch? Nach einem Jahr stelle ich fest, dass ich herzlich wenig über euch und eure Gründe weiß. Darum die Frage: Wer seid ihr eigentlich?
Erzählt mir von euch! Wie seid ihr hierher gekommen? Was macht ihr sonst im Leben? Was ist euer Hintergrund? Seid ihr alle Imker? Was findet ihr hier, das euch interessiert? Und was würdet ihr gerne noch sehen?
Wir hören!!
*With this, I join the who-are-you-thread initiated by Ed Yong and revived by Drugmonkey and many others in the science-blogosphere, from where a continuous flow of inspiration feeds into this blog.
March 25th, 2011 at 12:22
one year on and I still enjoy this blog.
my recommendation for a birthday son:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT_TP9nHApo&feature=related
March 25th, 2011 at 18:07
Happy Blogiversary!
I’m Glendon Mellow, an illustrator and fine artist from Toronto, Canada interested in evolutionary biology. I don’t know why I’ve become increasingly fascinated by bees the last few years; but I have.
My favourite bee is the bumblebee; F,G: Apidae Bombus or Autobot.
March 28th, 2011 at 00:52
I’m a 3rd year “beehaver” (the operative term in beekeeping being “keeping”) I’m starting over again after two years of dismal failure and losses. When I first started I was all about the honey. . . well, I was all about the mead. But you can’t make mead without honey, and without bees there is no. . . you get the idea. In a more than round-a-bout way, these fragile creatures have brought me out of my own industriously drunken myopia and into a world of cause and effect, of shared destiny, of spiritual connectivity. As a sort of indicator species, the honeybee has brought to the front how civilization seems to continually abuse the very sources we depend on for our own sustenance. Although I should’ve given up long ago and taken my losses, I’m left wondering whether it’s this way because of something inherently evil in people or because we let it be. Ancient cultures familiar with the honeybee believed that they came directly from paradise with a message of healing for the human race. I have taken up the cause with a passion to decipher this message and hopefully we can discover, together, our salvation.
March 28th, 2011 at 21:41
@Jutta
How come I didn’t know them yet?
@Glendon
I agree, there definitely is something about those bees. I have the feeling that they will stay with me too, one way or the other, a long time after we will have finished this film.
@Dean
This reluctance to let go that you are describing, despite the all problems one has with keeping the bees alive – that’s something that I have met in many, many beekeepers in the course of this project; no matter if they had ten hives or ten thousand, no matter how “natural” or “industrial” they run their business. This really impresses me about beekeepers (or beehavers) and I wish you lots of luck with your bees for the coming season!
Thank you all for speaking up!
March 29th, 2011 at 07:46
Hello Kerstin,
glad to see your blog is still busy, much more than mine recently. My wax moths are keeping me occupied and blogging has taken a bit of a back seat.
How I found yoru blog? Well, it’s hard to miss it considering you are making a MOVIE about BEES. Both are pretty fascinating. I’m looking forward to seeing the finished product. Good luck!
Nils
PS: Good to see so much bumble bee love on this website as well.
March 29th, 2011 at 21:44
Happy Birthday!
I heard of this filmproject from colleagues and I am absolutely fascinated by it.
Good luck!
S
March 30th, 2011 at 15:26
Hi guys!
I am an entrepreneurial type of a guy who has recently started a project to help a beekeeper in Alamosa Colorado to sell and market the amazing varietal honey that he makes. We started a new consumer friendlier label called “Grampa’s Gourmet” (the beekeeper is a 6th generation beekeeper and the label is dedicated to his grandfather).
I am completely new to beekeeping and the honey world in general, so I found this blog (and follow it now) while doing research.
Our challenge is to be able to support a full-time family beekeeper (600 hives) by emphasizing the “varietal” aspect of honey. Unlike most commercial operations, we keep all of our flower sources separated, and are able to product very distinct tasting (and looking) honey as a result. These have have a distinct “terroir” about them.
I’m excited to be learning about all things beekeeping – and want to thank you for your excellent blog.
April 3rd, 2011 at 17:52
Thanks for the kind words everyone!
@Nils
I must admit that I really didn’t know much about bumble bees and other wild bees before I started working on this project. It is mostly thanks to you and some other scientists that I learnt so much about them. Plus, of course, they are such adorable little fuzzballs. One simply has to love them!
@Grant
Although the film will be called “More than Honey”, honey has been playing an important part throughout the project. We sure learnt to appreciate its variety!
When I grew up in the Black Forest, all we ate was the dark and delicious forest honey we bought from the beekeeper a bit further up the valley and it was only in the course of this project that I began to explore other varieties.
I had a chance to try star thistle honey from California and fairyduster from Arizona, as well as tupelo honey from Florida, mountain honey from Switzerland and Linden honey from Berlin, where I now live. One I haven’t tried yet, but am really curious about is the famous Manuka honey from New Zealand. And I am sure there is a lot more to look forward to.
I am sure your customers will quickly learn to appreciate your different varieties, just like we did. Good luck!