Carol Burnett Show and Scarlett

I was getting my hair "done" the other afternoon and was reading an old magazine (they have the worst), anyhow a little trivia for you folks out there and particularly the ones that LOVE Miss Scarlett.  I should point out I tore the page out of the magazine (something I would not do when I was younger but now I do it all the time).  If I like it (say a recipe), I just tear it out and put in my purse.  But on to the real story here . . . . .
Bob Mackie created approximately 17,940 costumes for The Carol Burnett Show which I did watch and now watch and it just cracks me up.  Among the most famous designs was the "curtain-rod dress" made for a parody of Gone With the Wind.  Like Scarlett O'Hara in the 1939 movie, Burnett's character "Starlett" donned a dress made from green velvet drapes - only in this case the gold rod was still attached. You can watch it on YouTube - so funny!

"Starlett" in the Green Velvet Dress

Wishing you the best for the new year!

Quick Bee Check

Last Thursday (the 22nd), I checked Hive #1 (the only hive I have now).  The weather was around 60 degrees so a quick check was in order.  I moved the deep to the bottom of the hive and put the supers on top - still have two supers full of honey.  Mr. Ellis said the bees might have moved to the top to keep warm - I really have no idea what they're doing.  I just hope they make it thru the winter. 

So I have opened the top cover this past week just to make sure there are bees in the hive and they're at the top again.  I will leave well enough alone. 

A belated Merry Christmas 2016

Mr. Ellis and I have discussed our bee situation and neither of us have any idea what is going on - he is a very experienced beekeeper and he's at a loss as to what has happened.  He has one hive - we're not sure what will come in the spring and we're hoping for the best.  I have discussed with him moving my hives so they will be in more sun - since they're empty, it's not a problem. 

Thanksgiving at Biltmore

Grammy and Vivian

Thanksgiving was spent at the Biltmore this year.  It was wonderful and the Biltmore house and grounds were unbelievable. We took a rooftop tour of the Biltmore House, did the Candlelight Tour of the house and a carriage ride on our last day. 
A great trip and if you've never been - well, you just need to go.

Ugly Santa

I absolutely love this Santa!  I bought him this year and he just spoke to me when I was in the store.  But I didn't get him - I had to think about it for a day.  So I called my daughter and said would you please go by Homegoods and pick this guy up for me. I described him and she knew right away - her words were "it's here because nobody else would buy something this ugly". 
He gives me great joy for some reason and yes, he's not the most handsome Santa but he seems right at home with the plants.  And the best part - he was less than $10 - what a deal!
There's something for everyone out there!

Late Bee Checkup

The cold weather is coming and today was warm so I checked the bees this afternoon.  I have seen bees coming and going in all three hives so I was totally unprepared for anything less than bees in all three hives.

Hive #4 - two supers on top full of honey and some honey in the top deep.  Nothing in the bottom deep but there were no bees in the hive and I mean none.  In this hive, there were some dead bees on the bottom screen, maybe 20 or less, but not a cluster anywhere so they didn't starve. 

Hive #3 - another empty hive with two supers full of honey but not a cluster which is the norm for bees starving and not going up in the hive body to get food.  And there were none on the bottom board - empty!

Hive #1 - thank goodness there were bees in this hive.  The two supers were full of honey and the bees were in the brood box with maybe three or four frames of honey.  So I put the brood box in the middle with a full super on bottom and on top.  They looked fine but what do I know!

I called Mr. Ellis and he had the same thing happen to his bees.  He has one hive now.  I hope these bees will survive through the winter.  I will check them in another week or so depending on the weather.  Maybe I caught this hive early enough before they disappeared. 

Beekeeping is difficult and I feel I've done a poor job for the past couple of years.  But I'm a beekeeper and want to continue so I'll get some more bees in the spring and hope for the best.