Honey on the Brain

A friend recently confessed that she doesn't like honey. Truth be told, I didn't really used to like it much either. I found its thickness and sweetness cloying, its singular flavor almost dull in its intensity. Then my husband and I bought some honey at a farmers market in Kauai that came from bees who feasted on the blossoms in coffee and macadamia nut orchards. It was dark brown, complex, and forever changed my take on honey. It changed it enough so that a few years ago I considered starting an apiary in our yard. Then I read this book and saw how to install a beehive and decided to sleep on it. I continue to sleep on it. Others, however, are moving forward. Jardiniere restaurant, for example, recently added beehives to their rooftop garden smack dab in the middle of San Francisco, as pictured here.

Then I learned that Big Island Bees on the island of Hawaii just opened a beekeeping museum where people can learn about bees and honey, caring for the former and harvesting the latter. (Of course, if I'm honest, this bit of news turns my thoughts more towards how I can get myself to Hawaii than it does how I can get beehives into my backyard.)