Beeing Busy

  The Bee

Like trains of cars on tracks of plush
I hear the level bee:
A jar across the flowers goes,
Their velvet masonry

Withstands until the sweet assault
Their chivalry consumes,
While he, victorious, tilts away
To vanquish other blooms.

His feet are shod with gauze,
His helmet is of gold;
His breast, a single onyx
With chrysoprase, inlaid.

His labor is a chant,
His idleness a tune;
Oh, for a bee's experience
Of clovers and of noon!

--Emily Dickinson

I have long admired all the different kinds of bees. Each day of their lives, they were faced with never-ending toil. They worked tirelessly in their hives, attending their young, building perfect hexagonal cells, protecting the Queen, providing climate control by fanning their wings to cool down, or huddling together in a vibrating clump to keep warm. Outside the hives, they flew back and forth with heavy load of nectar and pollen, as they flitted between flower blossoms and hives.

Despite all these hard work, they seemed to be buzzing with joy. Their enthusiastic attitude filled my heart. I love to stand quietly in the garden and all I could hear were the buzzing drone that  was the engine of fertility: honey bees, bumble bees, hover flies pollinating the flowering plants, vegetables, bushes and trees. The French and English lavenders, thistles, sunflowers, roses, sweet peas, Echinaceas were festooned with bees. Bees were in decline and if they continued uncheck, we faced an ecological disaster that we may never recover from.

“Aerodynamically, the bumble bee shouldn’t be able to fly, but the bumble bee doesn’t know that, so it goes on flying anyway.”

~Mary Kay Ash~

We should thank the Apis mellilifera or the Western honeybee, for 1 in every 3 mouthfuls we ate today. Honeybees, which pollinated crops, were the ‘glue that held the agricultural system together’. But that glue were failing. Their hives were dying off or disappearing thanks to an unsolved malady called colony collapse disorder (CCD).

So what were killing these bees? Pesticides seemed to be harming bees even at what should be safe levels. Biological threats like the Varroa mite were killing off colonies directly and spreading deadly diseases. Farms were becoming monocultures of commodity crops like corn and wheat which provided little pollen for foraging bees, resulting them starving to death. If we don’t do something, there may not be enough bees to pollinate the flora, fauna and a third of our diet.. But more frighteningly, in a world where up to 100K species go extinct each year, the vanishing bees could herald of a permanently diminished planet.

It was very sad when our own government was against the banning of neonicotinoid pesticides. By not supporting the ban, the environment secretary, Owen Paterson, had exposed the UK government as being in the pocket of big chemical companies and the industrial farming lobby. In a letter released to the Observer newspaper under the freedom of information act, he told the chemicals company Syngenta that he was “extremely disappointed” by the European Commission’s proposed ban.”!!! Like the plight of the hedgehog, it was going to be up to us, the ‘little people’, the thousands of garden ‘land owners’ that by making small changes, we can make a difference for this amazing bees.

I just found out that Bayer had sued the European Commission to overturn a ban on the pesticides that were killing millions of bees around the world. A huge public push won this landmark ban only months ago and we can't sit back and let them overturned it while the bees vanished.

Bayer and Syngenta, two of the world's largest chemical corporations, claimed that the ban was "unjustified" and "disproportionate." But clear scientific evidence showed their products were behind the massive bee die-off that put our entire food chain in peril.Last month, 37 million bees were discovered dead on a single Canadian farm. And unless we act now, bees will keep dying. We have to show Bayer that we won't tolerate it putting its profits ahead of our planet's health. If this giant corporation manages to bully Europe into submission, it would definitely spell disaster for the bees.

Please sign the petition.

There were so many simple and easy ways. The first is to stop using insecticides and plant bee-friendly plants. These included bluebells, rosemary, geraniums, lavender, sweet peas, thistles and honeysuckles, which bumblebees prefer to the more exotic imports. Create natural habitat gardens by leaving a small space at the end of the garden to go au-naturel. By doing all these simple things, all gardens will be bee and butterfly central.

Bee faithful ~~~ Bee kind ~~~~ Bee happy ~~~ Bee thankful ~~~ Bee True

~Bless the Bees~

This week I felt like one of the bees, bumbling away from day to day. It had been a very busy week. I attended a new enquiry management system, ENQUIRE, which logged all library enquiries to make it easier to monitor and track them across departments. It was supposed to make record keeping, enquiry tracking and statistical reporting easier. This hopefully enabled quick and effective referrals between the Library teams. I am not directly involved in the process but it would be in my best interest to know what to do when the odd queries come my way.

I’m still facing problems with the EBL platform. It was never a straight-forward process and those involved were still trying to find the best solution. The problem was that the solutions kept on changing everytime a new bundle arrived for me to catalogue. I’d to be on my toes and alert if I came across any discrepancies. I’d to make sure that we don’t purchase the same books twice by checking them in our database first. A task that should have been overseen by the purchasing officer. I don’t mind doing it but it meant that it would take me longer to make the e-books available to the users. As a result, checking the platform first thing in the morning was my main priority at work.

It wasn’t all work and no play for me. The Psycho-Hitters rounders team had another match against the Uni. Engines. We played in the hard field opposite University House. For the first time, we’d more players than the opponents. Thankfully, my team mates were willing to play half innings each. We’d a wonderful time in the glorious sunshine and we played well although still losing 20:28. We still need to learn the rules and catch the ball better. Babe was already there when I arrived at the field and took some amazing shots. Thanks darling.

I attended a retirement dinner at Xananas for AD after work. I’d known AD when I started processing the British Official and European Union publications. AD had been the overseeing these collections on Floor 4 for more than 2 decades !!!. She could find these publications with her eyes closed. A lovely lady from Germany, she’d been a wonderful friend and I’m going to miss her lots and loads. She made my work a thousand times easier and it was going to be tough when she’s gone.

I’d never eaten at Xananas before although it was situated above the Student Union. I was looking forward to the meal and ordered the soft crab salad. Unfortunately, it wasn’t what I expected and was a bit greasy for my liking. We’d a wonderful time checking each other’s plate. Although the restaurant wasn’t full, the service was quite slow. My meal arrived first and I was nearly finished when a few of my colleagues had just started theirs. We’d dessert and it was definitely yummy. I chose the chocolate chip cookies with cream and ice-cream. Something very easy to assemble and which I’m very attempted to do during the bank holidays.

Babe was mucking about in the garden photographing moths and mating slugs (eeew) when he heard a loud rustling in the bushes. He thought it might be the neighbour’s cat or perhaps our resident fox, searching for a midnight snack. But he couldn’t see any. I went out and wallah, spotted our resident Mr. Prickly foraging under the bird-feeder. He was definitely making a lot of noise, snorting away. I rushed in the house to get some dog-food for our lovely visitor. He’d a little nibble and then ran off into the darkness. We followed him and that little prickly guy can really run.

My colleagues and I’d planned a fish and chips picnic even before we knew our manager was leaving us. Although he’d a busy morning, he was determined to join us which we really appreciated. Taking orders from 8 colleagues with different requirements was a real challenge but CC managed it like a trouper. She placed the orders first and we went to picked it at about 12.15 pm. We planned to have a picnic but the weather wasn’t on our side. Thankfully, the Students Union was available and we stank the place down :-). SLA made lemonade, JG brought yummy cherries and AM thought of the utensils. Thanks guys. RSC brought adorable Henry and he was busy munching vegetables and a chip. We’d a lovely time and wonderful memories.

I took Friday off because it was our 16th wedding anniversary. I’d many plans lined up but as usual even the best laid plans were foiled. Our car was leaking water.  So the first thing was to book an appointment at one of the garages in Foleshill. It was still safe to drive the car but we have to make sure that we have water in the boot. We drove into the city-centre to get a few bits and pieces. We drove to the market to park at our favourite spot. Unfortunately, the tickets had run out and the telephone engaged Grrr…there was a queue behind us and we’d to ask them to reverse because no one can use the parking lot. Luckily, we managed to find a parking space by the road but it was limited to 2 hours only.

It was still the school holidays and the city-centre was buzzing. A beach in the city centre was created on Shelton Square and it was packed. With the sea about 3 hours drive in either directions, the Conventrians were truly deprived of the sea. So I guess, the beach had to come to them. It was lovely to see the children having fun, with a few adults thrown in. Some were even seen having fish and chips on the deck-chairs. What was missing were the donkey rides. How could they missed that.

We proceeded towards the ruins of Coventry Cathedral because the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust were organising an event on peregrines and I wanted to see them first. We knew they were there because we’d seen a pair when they came to roost during the Godiva Awake performance. I have been in these ruins countless times but everytime I sat on one of the benches and looked around it felts like being in a post-apocalyptic film with glassless windows, ivy covered walls and a strange stillness. It was quite eerie actually. The ruins resonated with the futility and desolation of war! What a fantastic building it must have been before the Nazi bombs crashed through the roof in 1940. So devastating was the Blitz on November 14 that the Nazis coined the word 'Coventrate’ to describe the complete destruction of a city. I pray that it will never happen again.

On a sunny, bright day like today, with the clear blue skies for a roof, it was calm and serene. This place gave off a sense of liberation and contemplation. A very peaceful and reflective place to be in the middle of a very busy city centre and a great place to spend time contemplating, people watching, or just being still. It was lunch time and there were people having lunch, reading and visitors posing and taking photographs. I would love to climb the 180 steps of the church tower again but it would be too difficult for Babe. The 3rd. highest church tower in the country and the views from the top were spectacular.

We sat on one of the benches and spent the day looking up, with our cameras and binoculars scanning the sphires and other high-rise buildings surrounding the cathedral. There were plenty of pigeons flying in and out but no peregrines in sight. We walked past the Unity Green, between Coventry Cathedral and the Holy Trinity Church, still looking up. And there it was, a juvenile peregrine, fast asleep just below the church tower. Whoop…whoop. All you could hear was our cameras rattling away.

The Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), also known as the Peregrine, and historically as the “Duck Hawk” in North America, is a cosmopolitan bird of prey in the family Falconida. They are some of the fastest creatures in the animal kingdom, reaching speeds of over 200mph when diving for prey. Although they are traditionally seen on sea-cliffs, urban environments are increasingly being populated by them. Buildings provide the height needed for diving and the bounty of pigeons are a plentiful food source. I would love to see these agile and powerful birds of prey hunting and that meant another visit.

My falcon now is sharp and passing empty, and till she stoop she must not be full-gorged, for then she never looks upon her lure.
~William Shakespeare~

I’d the pleasure of being married and having a wonderful man as a husband, whom I adored with every breath of my being. I can say that celebrating our wedding anniversaries was a must. If a marriage was worth celebrating originally, then it was worth re-celebrating each and every year. In our case, twice a year because we’d 2 wedding ceremonies. An Islamic declaration in a mosque in Aberystwyth and a week later, in a registry. We exchanged soppy cards and I gave him a Spartacus DVD and a box of Ferrero Rocher while I received a bottle of Vera Wang’s Rock Princess. Thanks darling.

“To keep the fire burning brightly there’s one easy rule: Keep the two logs together, near enough to keep each other warm and far enough apart – about a finger’s breadth – for breathing room. Good fire, good marriage, same rule.”

~Marnie Reed Crowell~

The August Bank holiday was summer’s last blast as Britain basked in the glorious sunshine again. The sizzling summer was set for one final flourish with sunny weather and temperatures of up to 27C. We woke up to an azure blue skies with the sun beaming down on my lovely, overgrown, bursting garden. Traditionally, this was the weekend that people had their final barbecues and al-fresco meals. The final hurrah before school start, autumn and early, dark nights. But not yet. The long summer stretches on, moving gently and bathing us in warm sunshine.

We checked out the Coventry Festival of Motoring held at Stoneleigh Park. We drove to the car-park that we’d been last year and found out that the organisers had set up a different car-park. We followed the signs and somehow missed a turn and ended back in town!!! We retraced our route and arrived in one piece. This misadventure resulted us in missing the flagship ‘historic vehicle run’ which drove through the stunning South Warwickshire countryside and included a section driving through Coventry City Centre. This was the second year the event has been held at Stoneleigh Park instead of Coventry’s War Memorial Park.

It was quite a long, dusty walk from the car-park to the venue. We were among the 25K people walking past and admiring the record-breaking 54 car clubs in attendance including an impressive fleet of classis, luxury, vintage and sports car, showing off everything from Italian Abarth racing cars to classic Coventry Triumphs. The old-fashioned vehicles were undoubtedly the stars of the show though, with car club members attending in their droves. Some were even dressed to suit the occasion to celebrate the city’s motoring heritage.

But, we were more interested in checking out the steam traction engine displays which was new for this year. We followed the ‘woo-woo’ sound as steam was released from the engines. A traction engine was a self-propelled steam engine used to move heavy loads on roads, plough ground or to provide power at any chosen location. The name derived from the Latin tractus, meaning 'drawn', since the prime function of any traction engine was to draw a load behind it. They were sometimes called road locomotives to distinguish them from railway locomotives which were steam engines that ran on rails.

Road steam disappeared through restrictions and charges that drove up their operating costs and also with the introduction of petrol lorries. The last new UK-built traction engines were constructed during the 1930s, although many continued in commercial use for many years while there remained experienced enginemen available to drive them. Although no longer used commercially, traction engines of all types continued to be maintained and preserved by enthusiastic individuals and were frequently exhibited at shows such as this.

Then we went straight to the main stand to get a good view of the next performance. The Kangaroo Kids were a world class stuntmen from Brisbane, Australia. A father and son team, they thrilled the crowd with amazing and dramatic acrobatic performances from quad bikes. In 2000, Matt Coulter created two new "Guinness Book of Records" records by jumping 14 4 x 4 jeeps and 4 moving 4 x 4 jeeps. Unfortunately, he didn’t performed any of these but still put up a thrilling show. He did however jumped over a tractor and a Ferrari that made the crowd jumped when a rocket was timed to go off at the same time.

Again, the timing of the programme was really off. While the Kangaroo Kids were about to do the above stunt, we could hear the thundering and roaring sounds of aeroplanes flying towards the arena. Everyone looked up and suddenly the announcer announced a flypast from aeroplanes that fought in the Battle of Britain. And then above us, a Hurricane and Spitfire whizzed past and disappeared into the horizon. That was it. I bet some people didn’t even have time to set up their cameras.

There was also crowd participation when Matt invited 4 ladies to join him on his quad bike. It was amazing to see him take one at first around the enclosure and then another and then another and then all 4 squashed together. We could hear the women screaming when he drove faster and then tilted the bike to quite a weird angle. The slimmest woman had to sit on the bike handles which was hilarious. A standing ovation to all of them.   

This Festival doesn’t just celebrate the past. In the Future of Transport Expo hall you can explore current and future transport innovations from some of the region’s premier vehicle manufacturers, and The Sporting Bears was on hand to offer ‘dream rides’ for charity in both exotic and historic vehicles. We spotted some brave souls testing the Extreme Wheelie Machine. There was a free classic shuttle bus operating between Coventry Transport Museum and Stoneleigh Park for those lucky visitors arriving from the city centre. We didn’t stay long enough to see my friend who was taking part in the vehicle run because I was beginning to suffer from heat exhaustion.

We’d a chilled out bank holiday Monday. I spent the morning mowing the grass, clearing the spent plants and overgrown brambles. My lips were stained black from munching the juicy blackberries which was full of Vitamin C. I harvested the sweet corn, tomatoes, more beans and courgettes. I picked blueberries and had it with my cereal for breakfast. Unfortunately the pak choi and mizuno were depleted by the White caterpillars. Well, I guess if I want to enjoy the beautiful butterflies in the garden, I had to put up with the caterpillars. There were still plenty of Whites and Speckled Wood butterflies fluttering in the garden.

In nature, a repulsive caterpillar turns into a lovely butterfly. But with humans, it is the other way around : a lovely butterfly turns into a repulsive caterpillar.

~Anton Chekhov~