Blog
> Not easy being Queen February 13 2014
My “Wizard Of Oz” theory came to mind yesterday.
We often joke that being small business owners is like dashing around in front of and behind a curtain, doing all kinds of jobs, wearing all kinds of hats.
The “wizard” of the famous movie was a ticket taker, lever puller, wizard and even, if you will, a life coach.
Between Jeff and me, our responsibilities range from keeping bees, hammering together hive equipment, harvesting honey, bottling honey, graphic design, photography, branding, accounting — and sometimes even sales!
So, imagine my delight to get a letter yesterday addressed to the “Complaint Department.”
“Well, that’s a new one,” I thought, then opened the letter, wondering what the head of the newly formed Complaint Department should wear to work each day.
It seems that a customer in Washington received one of our honey sampler crates for Christmas, but one of the jars leaked. She kindly asked for a replacement, followed with best wishes and blessings from God.
We sent her a replacement the next day, along with two beeswax lip balms (since people in Washington probably need them more than anybody) and a handwritten note.
I’m hoping that’ll be the end of the Complaint Department, but with growth come other challenges and more hats to wear.
For example, I got a call the other day from a potential buyer who condescendingly asked, “Are you in a position to authorize samples being sent to us?”
I wanted to say, “Not only am I in a position to, as in standing over boxes and tape, but I am The Queen Bee and can authorize anything I want.”
Instead, with a wink at my dog, I said, “I think we can take care of that for you.”
> Honeybee facts January 06 2014
There is never an end to the questions we're asked about honeybees! Below are answers to a few of the most commonly asked questions. (We saved the best for last.)
• Honey bees fly up to three miles from their hives to collect nectar and pollen.
• It would take about eight honey bee stings for each pound you weigh to kill you.
• Male bees have no stinger and only one job; to mate with the queen. After they do their job they die.
• The honey bee's wings stroke incredibly fast, about 200 beats per second
• A honey bee can fly for up to six miles, and as fast as 15 miles per hour.
•The average worker bee produces about 1/12th teaspoon of honey in her lifetime.
• A hive of bees will fly 40,000 miles, more than once around the earth, to collect 1 pound of honey.
• It takes one ounce of honey to fuel a bee’s flight around the world.
• A honey bee visits 50 to 100 flowers during a collection trip.
• Only worker bees sting, and only if they feel threatened. They die once they sting.
• Queens have a stinger, but they don’t leave the hive to help defend it.
• During winter, honey bees feed on the honey they collected during the warmer months. They form a tight cluster in their hive to keep the queen and themselves warm.
• The queen bee can live up to 5 years and lays up to 3,000 eggs a day during the summer months
• Yes, we get stung.