Friday, May 19, 2006

Got Gwin!

Spring is turning into summer: most of the garden is planted, the bees are saying "Don't bother us, we're busy".

Gwin has returned, reconnected with her baggage, and is off to her 'Boot camp' to prepare for the MLE step 1 test in July, then Brooklyn in September, for a year. She'll be in Brooklyn Heights, the only area I know in Brooklyn. I really liked the areas I saw, close to the Verrazano Bridge and Ft. Hamilton.

Sam's last IVIg treatment had to be curtailed to 2, instead of 3, treatments. However he got some benefit: he's a bit steadier on his legs, and the numbness has receded to mid thigh, rather than the upper thighs. He has been walking more, which is difficult, but necessary. He is also writing; setting aside 3-4 hours a day to work on the writing that he's been swearing to do for years. I'm encouraged.

I went into the Driveway bees last week, just before getting Gwin. They looked as if they might swarm again! I can only assume it's because they're Russians. Several were not crowded, and had unmarked, new queens who are laying well. Some of those queen cells were huge. I set up nucs from all of the hives that looked to swarm, which I may rejoin to the original hive after swarming season is over. Or I could run them as two queen hives, with an excluder between the hivebodies. Now I need to put the swarms, that are in nucs, 5 frame small hives, into 10 frame regular boxes, so they can have more comb to expand their populations and store honey for the rest of the year. Once dry weather comes the nectar will dry up and they'll need the stores from spring nectar flow to continue to raise babies so the population will be strong enough to get through the winter.

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