The Honey Flow Slows

Last Friday was a hot day. I checked the beehives in preparation for a weekend of honey extracting and handling. A cool change was forecast for the Saturday so I thought I'd get an idea of how much honey there would be and get a few boxes off in case the bees were too cranky if the weather was bad.
I was a little disappointed. The heavy flow of the previous week had slowed and there was much less to take than I'd anticipated. In fact I only took honey from the two strong hives that had had no interruption to their brood rearing, and left plenty of unsealed honey on them and the others.
A message had come that the two brushcutters I'd ordered from Mt Evelyn Mowers, the Tanaka agent, had arrived, so I quickly put the boxes of honey in the shed and left for the farm, taking Gordon with me as he wanted to do a bit of mowing. In my haste I left behind Foxy's flax so when I got there I rang Robbie and asked could he bring it using Gordon's car, which was OK with the G man. This turned out to be a stroke of luck, as the hospital rang asking us to pick Lyle up as he was able to come home. He'd been rushed to Dandenong Hospital the previous day by ambulance not being able to get enough air, but he'd come good. He can't get up into my van and Roger had Meredith's car. **
So after I'd picked up the new whippers from Mt. Evelyn I drove Gordon's car down to Dandy hospital to pick up Lyle. The boys came with me. It was peak hour, bumper to bumper traffic, and Gordon's air conditioning doesn't work in his 17 year old car. The engine was overheating in the stop start traffic and an exhaust manifold gasket had blown making it sound like a Mac truck. Would you believe I got stuck in the lift at the hospital? I had to ring the alarm and they had to free me. It didn't take long but it was that sort of day.
We arrived back at the farm with Lyle at about 6.30. It's difficult getting him in and out of cars, his balance and mobility have deteriorated rapidly. The boys went home in Gord's car and I went down the back to water a few things that had been recently planted. It was still hot at 7.oopm. I went inside to get a stubbie of Cascade premium light from the fridge to drink on the way home. I wished I hadn't. Mum was cleaning the floor. Lyle had an bowell accident not long after we'd got him inside and it had gone straight down through his short pyjamas leg onto the floor.
Later that evening I was in the bathtub unwinding when Lib came up saying that was Raelene on the phone and that we were meeting her and John at Emerald at 7.00am to go to the Red Hill market. Fat chance, I thought.
The cool change came in the night with no measurable rain. In the morning it was cold. Lib and Rob left for the market and I stayed to do my honey thing. With the hot weather of the day before and the other drama I hadn't turned the heater on to keep the shed warm through the night. It's amazing the difference it makes to the pleasantness of the work. Cold, dense honey is awful to work with. There was another 40 kg or so in the tank at the end of the day.

** His daughter had his car. A motor bike rider had jumped off his bike to avoid, or because of, an accident with a different car and smashed her back window and dented her roof. He made her an offer for her old bomb rather than have her go to his insurance co. and she accepted and left her car behind for the bikie to have towed away. I kid you not.