Worldwide Beekeeping
Beekeeping => Beekeeping 101 => Topic started by: Retroguy on February 18, 2016, 01:43:59 am
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Had to combine my 2 hives last Fall due to lower populations. That went okay but I think I failed to put syrup on early enough and they didn't get enough stored for the winter. Checked on them a couple of weeks ago when it was in the 40s and they were still managing to stay warm so put on a winter patty in case they decided they needed it. Quick in, quick out. Had another cold snap after that and when I checked on them this weekend (hit a high of 50) didn't see any movement. Oh well, typical newbee experience. Got 3 nucs coming in April and we'll start from scratch. I'll wait for the weather to warm up a bit then freeze the combs and get everything ready to go.
I'm getting laid off from work on St. Patrick's Day and am seriously considering dodging job opportunities for the summer so I can concentrate on things that are more important than Corporate America's agenda. Funny how Upper Management expects one to put the Company ahead of all else. I'm getting tired of working for the servants of Mammon. :P Might just take my Social Security, take up a hoe and sell sweet corn & veggies to the cute soccer moms in my neighborhood. Maybe raise some pullets and start selling eggs.
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You'll have drawn comb to get those nucs off to a great start in th spring.
Our family has been affected by "restructuring" as well, sometimes not much you can do. Enjoying the summer sounds good to me though! :)
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Reetroguy:
I'm sorry you are being laid off, but I am happy that you have the option to stay home if you so desire. Selling produce to cute soccer moms doesn't sound bad. Just be sure you don't start trading for veggies. :)
Seriously, I am sorry you're being laid off, or as the PC personnel directors say, "you're a victim a downturn in the economy, or your position has been (riffed), which is an acronym for reduction in force." Oh well, you're a cool guy with a great sense of humor and with your attitude there will be other opportunities if you so desire.
On the upside, Perry is correct in that you will have some good comb for those nucs.
Good luck,
Lazy
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Retroguy, I am sorry to hear about your work issues too. You seem to be taking it in stride and remaining up beat. That's great! Speaking personally, when life hands you lemons, sometimes it's the best thing that could have happened. They might be doing you a favor.
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best wishes to you retro! the summer agenda sounds divine!
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Hope the bees hang on but even if they don't your attitude is great.
I got fired in February 1999 - best thing that ever happened to me. Been on the run self employed for part of each year ever since, and semi - retired for the other half.
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:D Thanks, all of you (say Perry, you appear to be getting a little more hair. Probably handy up in NS. LOL).
Just had a meeting today that may open some more possibilities. Since my job was affected by a move of equipment & jobs to Mexico I qualify for some re-education funding from the State & Feds. I don't know if they'll buy into this but the U of MN has a cracker-jack bee program. Wondering if I can add entymology (bee related of course) to my existing B.of S. in Animal Science? Maybe I could finagle some sort of learning opportunities since I'm only 20-25 minutes away from the St. Paul Campus where all the cool farm kids go. Or maybe I'll have to settle for online bee studies from U of MT or PA or such. Or if they won't buy into apiculture perhaps I can take welding / sheetmetal courses at the vocation colleges. I work on Model T Fords and sheet metal repair is a highly sought after talent. Almost any pre-WWII car or truck has cracks in the fenders from all the rattling around they've done. I meet with a counselor next week and will get a better handle on the possibilities then.
The whole ball of (bees) wax can take up to 72 months. I could get a bee education, a diploma and retire to the apiary. Hmmm... gotta be a catch.
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Retroguy:
Mexico is taking so many of our jobs, that maybe the illegal immigration will be going SOUTH. Our country keeps on upping taxes and regulations and wondering why our businesses are moving away. Hello!
On your immediate future, you're on the right track. Get all the education you can at other's expense. A good education in beekeeping subjects, such as entomology, would be of great assistance, and some welding credentials would add to your worth. A friend of mine says, "we all have a tool box, and the more tools (skills) you have in your box the greater your value." In my work, I sometimes pay really big bucks for welding.
The better welders that can marry different metals together make much more per hour. Sheet metal is also a lucrative skill.
It looks like you are in the driver's seat.
lazy
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I'm getting laid off from work on St. Patrick's Day and am seriously considering dodging job opportunities for the summer so I can concentrate on things that are more important than Corporate America's agenda. Funny how Upper Management expects one to put the Company ahead of all else. I'm getting tired of working for the servants of Mammon. :P Might just take my Social Security, take up a hoe and sell sweet corn & veggies to the cute soccer moms in my neighborhood. Maybe raise some pullets and start selling eggs.
Retroguy, That is exactly what I did. I made millions for my employers over my career. I say that with pride, not resentment. But the simple fact was you are only as good as what you've done lately. I let them know for years when I was going to retire( as soon as all my debts were paid and my home was off grid). When I did, they were shocked, but they wished me well. I thought I would be bored but Sweet Wife has a honey do list about 3 feet long. So I'm working as hard as I ever have! :)
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Retro, that's sounds like my kind of an idea. Except for the hoe part, too many hours of forced labor in the tobacco fields, still get swimmy headed thinking about it. I hated college classes for the most part, especially the ones past a masters degree. Probably would have been different if it had been something more to my liking, and job on the line. But the welding classes I took, I couldn't wait until the next one. I still can't make pretty welds , but can fix what I break for the most part or at least know I can't and who to get.
Sorry about the lay off, but I'm jealous of the opportunities you have.
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Well, yesterday was warm enough to have a look and I was right, they're dead. Went through all the bodies but didn't find a queen amoung them. This was a newspaper combine and there were 2 queens involved but I figured they'd duke it out with one coming out on top. For all I know they managed to kill each other and the hive dwindled. There were 2 supercedure cell (unhatched) and an unhatched swarm cell so my guess is that the colony tried to raise a new queen but didn't have the proper age larvae. Not any capped brood that I could see. I also fell for the "first year colonies don't need to be checked for Varoa." I'll be doing mite checks this year.
Lugged everything into the kitchen, scraped off the burr and cross comb and put both deeps in the freezer in the cellar. LOTS of stores so the nucs I've ordered will have a good place to start.
I'm in the process of assembling more woodenware so I'll have it on hand in the future. By the time Autumn rolls around I should have the old barn fairly torn down and there's plenty of beehive lumber in that.
Got a feeling I'm going to bee busy... 8)
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Retroguy = glass half full, I like it. :yah:
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If you can retire now, Take the money and run. I worked 40 years for the RR. They own my life. I played ball with them and rode with them. they put a dollar in my back pocket. Today I’m sitting home with a beautiful retirement. Those 40 years went so fast. I still miss the company but not the people I had to work with.
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I retired early, and in the process settled for less money AND more time. I'd do it again. In these 19 years we have bought and sold some properties, traveled some and spent a lot of time with immediate family, our parents and in-laws in their dotage and deaths. Time well spent.
I still miss the company but not the people I had to work with.
My experience left me missing contact with people (audiology patients), not the job. Interesting contrast. :-)
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Lburou
The RR was good to me. 40 years never laid off. I only missed 3 months of work due to knee injury. When I hired out in 1973 for the Penn Central. Unions were very powerful. The men were a different breed to work with. We stuck together. If company gave us any crap. We would throw the crap back at the company. Penn Central went bankrupt in 1976. Conrail took us over. They lasted for about 20 years before we were broken up by the Norfolk southern and CSX. I finish up my career with the CSX. I'm hearing rumors now. The CSX is talking about taking over a major Canadian RR. When I left, the union was a joke. Most of the men were from the younger generation. They hated the union. Most of them were a bunch of lackeys and back stabbers That’s why I left. CSX was a good company to work for if you worked with them and worked by their strict safety rules. I saw a lot of people come and go. I guess I’m blessed. How many people you know that worked for an industry for 40 years and never got laid off. We have 4 major RR right now that need people real bad. If you can pass a pee pee test the UP, BNSF, NS, and CSX need people now. You must have common sense. Work any day of week and work steady that means cant take off a lot of time. I never had a weekend off. When I was younger I worked all holidays. we cant drink any alcohol beverage before our tour of duty because we never no when they come in with the pee bottles to pee for them. If you take drugs, they will get you. Like I said you have to be a clean person to work for the RR today. Your job was all different. That’s why you loved the people you worked with.
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""When I hired out in 1973 for the Penn Central. Unions were very powerful. The men were a different breed to work with. We stuck together. If company gave us any crap. We would throw the crap back at the company. Penn Central went bankrupt in 1976.""
Yep, that about says it all.
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I get it, and understand why you feel the way you do. :-)
Retro, I like the idea of more training. :-)
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Gee whiz Retro, sounds as if we both had the same situation. Sorry to hear of your loss of bees.
Job wise, this might be a great opportunity for you. From what I hear, there is a huge demand in the country for welders. I like the bug study thing too. You need to find what makes you happy. I retired at 55 just over 7 years ago and I never have a problem filling my day. Best decision I ever made! Good luck with whatever newly opened door you step through.
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My brother worked for CSX for 46 years, he wanted to retire early but they would not let him until he was 62, or retirement age for every one on SS. the last 20 years he was at rockport in tampa bay where they unloaded freight into ships and the last ten he was forman there so he kind of had it made you would think, the biggest promble he had was getting parts to fix things that did not work and the young men working under him to do their job. He sang a song when he did retire.
Ken
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Iddee
it makes me laugh how you outsiders think. Most of you think the unions helped destroy our jobs today. Sorry bud your wrong. Unions are the middle class. Union men vote. If we hear any politician talking bad about us. Come election day. Bye bye. The union didn’t bankrupt the Penn central. The PC took over the PRR and the New York central RR around 1970. the PC took all the money from the RR and put it in their hotels in NY city. That why they went bankrupt. 1976 the federal gov formed Conrail. They took over The PC along with 7 other bankrupt RR. We had 112 thousand employees. When they broke us up 20 years later we only had 18 thousand left with a very good company. The unions made Conrail a great company. We worked for 10 years without any contract. Gave up massive job cuts too. Gov took care of us too. I had the chance to retire at age 60. I worked to 61. I wanted to work till I was 65 but couldn’t deal with the younger generation. They hated us older guys. They blamed us for all the job loss we have today in our country.
If the company gave me the option for an early retirement I would turn it down, all they want is get rid of us older workers and replace us with the younger workers. A lot of people took the carrot and ran, a year later they had no job and no healthcare benefits. That age group from 55 to 65 had a tough time paying for healthcare. Most of them had to live without any healthcare till they could get into medicare at 65, the others had to take the gov plan we have today. Life been to easy in our country. People think the grass looks greener on the other side. Not me I keep working till I’m safe to retire.
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I moved to Illinois in 1972 and went on my first union job. I left there in 1982, swearing I would never go to another non-right to work state. I totally hated the union the ten years I was in three different ones. A sorry person who put out 1/2 what I did would not get reprimanded nor asked to speed up. I was the one reprimanded and told to slow down or I would be replaced. I was making him "look bad". The job paid by piecework. Two of the three companies went bankrupt. ""No wonder"".
The third one I left the job to move back south.
If a man won't work, the union is great.
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Kebee
god bless him. I hope he can see many years of retirement. He earn it. The CSX is a big company. They have trucks, boats and the rail road. CSX is the RR, CSXT is intermotal. I think they are non union. I worked for the RR part of it out of Buffalo NY. In order to be able to retire at age 60. we need 30 years of service with 360 working months. If you don’t have 360 months. You cant retire till you have 360 months. You can get a RR disability with 20 years of service. But you have to see a union lawyer to get it approved with the RR retirement board. It sounds to me he was laid off for a long time because he didn’t have 360 months. That why he worked till 62 with 46 years. It sounds to me he worked with intermotal freight. That freight comes in from china or we ship our stuff over there by boat. CSX moves it with stack trains around the country. I had to inspect a lot of those trains along with other has-mat trains.
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Iddee
most of our country is right to work states. Corporate America can screw the worker because they have nobody to fight for them. If you work for a non union company. They take advantage of the employee. They work him to death and force him to work under deplorable working conditions. If he gets hurt, they fire him. Those kind of companies pay you very little and no vacation time off. The human body can only take so much before it breaks down and need repairs. No union you have nothing. If we didn’t have the AFLCIO our country would have all sweat shops. Only thing that matter to them is profits. The workers are the heart of any company. They make it work. Today the upper management part of it brainwashes the workers to want you to be leave your union is bad for you. Most of these people never did a days work in there life. I'm glad I’m out now. I hope the younger workers can come up with a good way to make a good wage. They will need it. The sad thing about it. They don’t stick together.
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SOLIDARITY! The Unions made this Country Great. :eusa_clap:
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Ray, you're right, but they went overboard and now are worse than management.
Ray4852, you're still living in the 1930's or before if you believe all that. Communication these days is so much better that you can find a job in another state within a couple of hours. The non union and the union employers are so near matched in pay and benefits that you would never know the difference by touring the facility. I have worked non union for 40 plus years and union for 10. I'll take non union 3 to 1. I have never been layed off nor out of work on strike with a non union. The head man's office has always been open for negotiating, if you were a reliable employee worth management's time to try to keep.
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Ray
I heard your state went to right to work now. Is this true.
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Iddee
I worked for the RR most of my life with a part time job doing commercial refrigeration a few years. What I hear from other people who work in non union shops. They cant get a decent wage. You claim these companies pay good wages because they are non union. Who do you think got those good wages and benefits for the non union shops. The union. Those non union shops pay their people good pay because they don’t want the union to move into there company. Who do you think did all the dirty work by going out on strike and fighting to get better working conditions. union men. You non union men sit around and bad mouth our union because you think we are a bunch of lazy men because we want a union. Iddee I live in the 2016 time, not 1930. what do you know about 1930. how come the gov want to increase the minimum wage to 15 dollars. Because we don’t have any good paying jobs around anymore. The medical field pays good pay. But they have to go to school for years to get it. A lot of nurses in my state are union now. I been retired now for 2 years. I see whats going on out there. I talk to other people too.
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NC has always been right to work.
One of the large battery companies, I THINK Everready, went union about 25 years ago. When the employees started to ask what happened to the yearly raises and other benefits, they were told the union didn't allow it. It had to be by contract, every 3 years. They voted it back out. Right to work means choice, not slavery.
What you say there is mostly true, but also somewhat deceptive. As this.."Because we don’t have any good paying jobs around anymore." You're right. The companies couldn't stay afloat when the unions went overboard, so they went to non union countries. Now we are forced to send all our money to those non union countries when we buy their products. I agree, at one time the unions were a great thing. So was the KKK. Then when they were no longer needed, they went to hades.
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I'm removing my previous text.
lazy
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ray4852, it has been an enjoyable conversation, but we are hijacking the thread and folks aren't going to like it. You make the last union post and I won't reply. We can get back on track and stay with the OP.
EDIT: Sorry, Lazy, you posted while I was writing, but we still need to get back on track.
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Iddee
my opinion our companies went over seas to grab the cheap labor. I also believe they left because our unions got to powerful. Gov wanted to weaken the unions by closing up shops here. I believe we will see a lot of our companies come back here when we put in the Donald for president. We have to cut taxes too to bring back our jobs. I think the younger generation will find a way to make a decent wage with out the union. It will work for a while but the companies will go back to there old ways again. Its up to the next generation if they want a union or not. Us old farts will argue here because we have nothing better to do with ourselves. The trump show will be on soon. I can watch that.
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No Ray he was never layed off and they may have change the age retirement from when you retired, and he was union the hold time. At the port they shiped out any thing that could be loaded in a hopper car on to ships, it was a rotter hopper dump.
Ken
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I retired two years ago. 10 years ago we had to be 62 with 30 yrs of service. The union fought hard to put it back to 60. I know the retirement board wants to increase the age again because we have more people collecting than paying into it. I don’t think they changed it now under a democrat administration. My wife turns 60 in 5 months. She can collect half of my retirement when she turns 60. I have to look into it. I know the age will go up again in the future.
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I checked with the retirement board. You had me worried. Its still 60. she can retire when she turns 60. boy I was worried. My blood pressure is back to normal now.
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BACK TO BEEKEEPING BOYS
Had to combine my 2 hives last Fall due to lower populations. That went okay but I think I failed to put syrup on early enough and they didn't get enough stored for the winter. Checked on them a couple of weeks ago when it was in the 40s and they were still managing to stay warm so put on a winter patty in case they decided they needed it. Quick in, quick out. Had another cold snap after that and when I checked on them this weekend (hit a high of 50) didn't see any movement. Oh well, typical newbee experience. Got 3 nucs coming in April and we'll start from scratch. I'll wait for the weather to warm up a bit then freeze the combs and get everything ready to go.
What was the cause for the low population in the fall? If the hives were suffering from excessive bee die off, even after combining what makes you think that is will not continue even after combining the 2 week hives.
Mite treatment is great for reducing mite loads for brood raised in the spring. But your winter bees that came from brood that was capped about the middle of August onward till they stopped brood production which was probably mid to the end of October.
Bees can live after having mites feast them as larva. How much it effects the bees as adults is not totally clear. but if it causes bees to die off early due to the damage done as lava, the viruses transfered to the larva and the bees. With a rapid die off of bees in the hive due to mites that had access to the winter bee population, the reduces population that may not have been directly affected by mites feeding on them could still be effected by viruses. Also the the life span of the bee is linked to the amount of physical work that the bee does. As mite infected bees die prematurely Other healthy bees need to do more to try to maintain the hive. This extra work load shorten there life. Eventually there are not enough bees left in the hive to meet all the needs of the hive at that time.
Look at all the factors when the hive perished and the what IFs. IF it hadn't been such a mild winter the bees would have been less active = live longer, consume less honey. IF the weather was not so mild in the first part of Jan the bees would not of started so much brood. Less brood = less work, less honey consumed around the cluster area, less brood that needed to be covered so bees could relocate more to stay on the honey. IF the cold spell Did not happen or was for a shorer duration, the bees cluster may have not shrunk off the honey.
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Good point(s) Apis. I haven't satisfied myself that my initial conclusion was the cause. Most likely ignorance is a contributing factor too. You're description of the work load being transferred to the remaining worker bees is somewhat similar to the last 7 years of my career. LOL
Cut the workforce and put the extra load on the remaining staff. Anyhoo, I'll continue to ruminate over what went on.
One of my beefs about the present corporate mindset is that I always was part of that crowd that had a little "government work" going on during my lunch hour. As I explained to a former boss a few years back, "Why do you see so many custom motorcycles and streetrods in the parking lot of a sheetmetal fabricator? It's because the scrap metal gets turned into useful items." At Honeywell in Minneapolis the lunch boxes consisted of 24" long metal boxes that carried a thermos, a couple of sandwiches and a project. Now days even the trash is an asset until proven otherwise. I've heard of people getting dismissed for grabbing cardboard boxes for moving because that means less cardboard in the baler and less income from the recycler.
After thinking about that last night, I grabbed a piece of aluminum stock I had under my desk and made an OA vaporizer. Where I worked 20 years ago, I'd have made up the power cables for the glow plugs too.
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as iddee said..............
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi1056.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Ft373%2Friverbee1%2FEmoticons%2Fbacktotopicpng1_zps492bc69a.png&hash=b0d93806a06d35e0831ab30039c6905415f215e7)
please..........