AND WAS TRIMMING SOME IVY AND NOTICED A FEW HONEY BEES 🐝 BUZZING AROUND. NORMALLY THEY NEVER BOTHER ME BUT TODAY IT WAS VERY DIFFERENT STORY.

I HAD 2-3 BUZZING AROUND MY FACE AND WOULD JUST NOT STOP. HAYDEN DECIDED TO RUN FOR THE HOUSE (MUCH SMARTER THAN ME) AND I JUST WALKED ABOUT 30 FEET AWAY TO SEE IF I WAS NEAR A HIVE SOMEWHERE. I NEVER SAW A HIVE BUT WE HAD RAMDOM BEES ALL OVER SINCE THE TREES AND AGAPANTHUS ARE ALL IN BLOOM. AS I WAS WALKING AWAY, THE FIRST BEE STRUCK! IT GOT ME ON THE TOP OF MY HAND, I STILL HAD MY CUTTING SHEARS IN MY RIGHT HAND SO I SMASHED HIM INTO OBLIVION SINCE HE JUST SAT THERE AFTER THE STING. BY THIS TIME I WAS GETTING REALLY PISSED. I WILL NEVER KILL A HONEY BEE SINCE THEY ARE SO IMPORTANT TO THE WORLD BUT THEY NEVER BEEN AGGRESSIVE LIKE THAT TOWARDS ME.

HEIDI, WHO WAS WAS SAFE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE YARD, TOLD ME THAT I WAS A BIG BABY AND IT WAS MY FAULT THEY WERE GETTING MAD BECAUSE I WAS RUNNING AWAY. I DECIDED TO WALK RIGHT OVER TO HER SO THE STALKING BEES COULD FOCUS ON MY WIFE RATHER THAN ME, (KIND OF LIKE THE MOVIE THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER). AFTER ABOUT 5 SECONDS SHE SAW THE 2-3 BEES I WAS FEARING. THEY WERE STILL ON ME LIKE A NAVY SEAL ON A JIHADI DEN, BUT I WAS ABLE TO HEAD TOWARDS THE HOUSE. THE FEW BEES WERE STILL BUZZING AROUND SO I GOT MY SECOND STING HEADING TO THE HOUSE, THIS ONE ON THE SHOULDER. HAYDEN WAS ALREADY INSIDE LOOKING OUT AT US THROUGH THE GLASS DOOR SINCE HE’S TERRIFIED OF BEES. I HAD 3-4 MORE BUZZING AROUND SO WE RAN INSIDE AND 2 OF THE BEES FOLLOWED. I KILLED ONE AND ANOTHER WAS ON MY SHIRT TRYING TO STING ME. WE ALSO HAD 2-3 TRYING TO GET TO US BUT KEPT HITTING THE CLEAR GLASS FROM THE OUTSIDE. I MADE A TACTICAL DECISION TO GO OUTSIDE AND KILL THE LAST FEW BEES. HOW HARD COULD THIS BE HUH??

WELL, I FINALLY KILLED THE LAST 3-4 WITH A PAPER BUT I GOT MY 3RD STING FROM ONE OF THEM. I HAD TO RETRIEVE THE RAKE AND A FEW MORE ITEMS FROM THE LOWER YARD SO I WENT DOWN TO CHECK IT OUT. HEIDI AND I STARTED TO WORK IN THE OTHER PART OF THE YARD SINCE IT ALL SEEMED CLEAR AND I COULD NOT FIND A HIVE. YOU CAN’T MISS THOSE WITH THE BUZZING SOUND AND BEE ACTIVITY. I SAW A RANDOM BEE BUT HAD NOTHING TO FEAR. AFTER ABOUT 5 MINUTES, I HAD ANOTHER 2-3 BUZZING ME AND HEIDI HAD 2 BUZZING HER AS WELL. SHE GOT HER SECOND STING ON THE SIDE OF THE NECK AND YELLED “ ABORT THE MISSION” AS SHE RAN FOR THE HOUSE FOR THE SECOND TIME.
I GOT MY 4TH STING IN MY BACK AS I WAS LAUGHING AT HEIDI AND TELLING HER NOT TO RUN WHILE ADVISING HER SHE WAS MAKING THEM MAD. I DECIDED TO GET OUT OF THERE AND WENT TO THE FRONT YARD TO WORK THERE IN SAFETY. BY THIS TIME, HEIDI AND HAYDEN JOINED ME IN RAKING SOME PINE NEEDLES IN THE GRASS. WE ALL WORKED FOR ABOUT 30 MINUTES BEFORE WE SAW A FEW MORE BEES BUZZING AROUND. I GOT STINGS 5,6,7,8 WHILE IN THE FRONT YARD BUT HEIDI AND HAYDEN DIDN’T GET ANY STINGS. THE LAST BEE STING (NUMBER 9) I RECEIVED WAS RIGHT UNDER THE RIGHT BUTT CHEEK & THAT ONE AND HURT THE WORST.

HAYDEN TOLD ME AN ADULT CAN TAKE HUNDREDS OF BEE STINGS BEFORE HAVING A MEDICAL EMERGENCY SO I WASN’T TOO WORRIED. HOWEVER, AFTER I GOT THE 9TH BEE STING, I WAS DONE FOR THE DAY. SOME STINGS DIDN’T HURT AS MUCH AND SOME I FELT FOR A LONG TIME.

AS WE WERE HEADING IN, I SAW MY NEXT DOOR NEIGHBORS IN THE DRIVEWAY SO WE DECIDED TO WARN THEM OF THE BEES WHEN WE HEARD A LOUD SCREAM OF HIS OLDEST DAUGHTER AS SHE WAS RUNNING UP THE DRIVEWAY. WE ASKED HIM IF THEY HAD ANY BEES OVER THERE SINCE I WAS STUNG NINE TIMES AND HEIDI TWICE. HE TOLD ME THAT HE HAD A LARGE HIVE IN HIS BACK YARD THAT THE BEE KEEPER TOOK OUT SATURDAY. HE ALSO TOLD ME THE BEES NEVER STUNG THEM AND WERE VERY CALM UNTIL THE BEEKEEPER REMOVED THE HIVE AND QUEEN. THE BEEKEEPER TOLD THEM SATURDAY THE HIVE HAD SOME AFRICANIZED BEES IN IT AS WELL.

IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW. I KNEW I DIDN’T HAVE A HIVE NEAR ME BUT I SURE HAD A GROUP OF ANGRY DISPLACED BEES WHO WANTED SOME REVENGE. I THINK THEY WILL MOVE ON SOON. I CAN’T DEAL WITH THIS WHEN I HAVE SO MUCH YARD WORK TO FINISH WITH.

IN THE END, I KILLED 25-30 BEES AND GOT 9 BEES STINGS WHILE HEIDI GOT JUST 2. HAYDEN GOT ZERO, CLEARLY THE SMARTEST ONE OF THE BUNCH!

I WOULD NOT HAVE STAYED OUTSIDE IF THESE WERE WASPS OR HORNETS, THOSE THINGS ARE ABSOLUTELY HORRENDOUS!