Dear Crabby,
I hate bees! I have been afraid of those little guys’ stings since I was a kid. What can I do to avoid ever getting stung again?
Sincerely, Bee Outta Here
Dear Bee Outta Here,
I personally use the same philosophy for bees that I use for salesmen and politicians – I avoid them like the plague! I was not always so keen and distinct however. I remember when I was about 8 years old, I had been collecting pop cans by the beach. One can in particular was down in a little hole. As I went to grab it out, I did not even notice the steady stream of yellow and black buzzer carriers coming and going. I grabbed my ten-cent trophy and started walking back to show my mother. Suddenly, I noticed the look on some people’s faces as I was walking by – complete terror and speechlessness. I turned my head and saw a wall of bees twice my size and out numbering the sand in the sea! Within an instant, I was completely engulfed and was being stung and bitten by every kind of bee that ever existed. I stood there dancing and screaming and my poor mother didn’t know what was going on or what to do to stop them! All of a sudden a SCUBA diver that had just returned from his activities saw me and took off in a full sprint towards me. He whisked me up and ran off the end of a dock with me under his arm. By the time he and I came back up, he was holding me with two hands and said “There you go, look around you. They are all dead now.” As I stopped screaming, I saw all the bees floating around me and realized they were finally not attacking me anymore. We walked back to my mother where I stood quietly, still shaken up a bit. Someone nearby walked up and asked whether I was allergic to bees or not. The SCUBA guy laughed and said, “If he was, he wouldn’t be standing here right now.” I guess that is one way to get a child tested for allergies! From that day forward I was keenly aware of these little guys and where they might be. I remember being out with some friends when I was first married. There was a group of bees hovering around us. I told everyone to just ignore them and they would ignore us too. About 5 seconds later, our friend jumped up yelling that one of those ignored little bees had flown up her shorts and stung her! Boy, that proved my theory wrong. So, now I say leave them alone and stay away if you can. I am told bees are more attracted to certain plants and flowers so you can be careful what ones are around your house. You can even spray and do some proactive things to protect your yard. Out in the public though you need be on the defensive. So good luck and let me know how it turns out.
Sincerely, Dear Crabby
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