@SahilBloom: Ok, random interesting experie...

Ok, random interesting experience yesterday that I want to share:

Playing in the backyard with my son, when I notice some bees flying around a tree.

Take my son inside and get closer to investigate.

Here's what I saw (and what I learned):

Let me preface this by saying two things:

1. I hate bees. Got stung by too many wasps and hornets while playing barefoot as a kid.

2. I know nothing about the different types of bees.

Worried about my kid getting stung, so I start looking for exterminators.

Apparently it's really hard to find an exterminator willing to come out on a Saturday to deal with a bunch of bees.

Go figure.

I get one on the phone who is willing to do it.

Asks for a picture, so I send him one.

He replies:

Ok, now I'm interested.

Honeybees are very different from the things that terrorized me as a kid.

They're generally not dangerous and important for the environment.

Still not sure I can tell the difference while they fly around, but the different nest/hive is abundantly clear.

I start googling Honeybee Farmers (is that the right word?) and come across this listing on Google.

Looks promising!

Larry says he can be here in a few hours, asks for some specifics around height of the hive, etc.

A few hours later, Larry and his friend arrive.

They've got a cool specialized bee vacuum, a ladder, and a bee hat/shirt.

Larry is awesome. Very knowledgeable. Makes his own small batch raw honey in his backyard.

Here are the 20,000 bees for Larry to add to his local farm.

No one got stung, the bees found a new home, and Larry is going to be making even more of his delicious raw honey.

I am no longer quite as scared of bees.

Larry said you could walk calmly through a cloud of honeybees and not get stung.

(I won't be trying that)

Just had some of the raw honey on my breakfast.

Insanely good.

If you want to try it, email Larry for shipments and tell him Sahil sent you!

Support local small businesses in the process.

When I first started writing, people told me to pick a niche and stick to it.

“Stay in your lane.”

Four years later, I’m writing threads about honeybees and raw honey.

Definitely didn’t listen to the advice.

🤣🤣🤣

Larry is the epitome of everything I love about small businesses.

He’s a retired science teacher.

Personal, human approach. Does the old fashioned things well. Cares about the customers.

Leave reviews and support your local small businesses!

I told my wife I was basically Assistant Regional Beekeeper.

She replied:

“Assistant TO the Regional Beekeeper, big difference.”

This is why we’re happily married.

🤣🤣🤣

The coolest part of this entire learning experience was getting to do it alongside my son.

He’s a bit young to fully understand, but it was fun trying to explain to him what I was doing, what we were learning, etc.

Plus, he had the raw honey with Greek yogurt for his dessert!

Update from Larry:

Hard at work today. 40,000+ honeybees in a monster hive in a West Village ceiling.

Absolute legend.

Someone sent me this helpful guide.

I can’t stop laughing.

🤣🤣🤣