Day #109 Gwinnett Environmental & Heritage Center

If you've been reading my blog from the start, you may recall that I was inspired to keep bees after speaking with various beekeepers last September at the Gwinnett Environmental and Heritage Center. It's that kind of place -- they pull together fascinating people and fascinating information in thought-provoking, fun exhibits.



(c) BluePeak.net



Yesterday I dropped by there to see Your House, My House. What fun! I got to step inside a Navajo hogan, a Malaysian stilt house, and a Fijian M'bure. I also got to try to put the roof on a Mongolian ger (rhymes with dare). That one was a model about 3 feet in diameter, and I struggled to get poles threaded into a wooden circle and attached to leather brackets spaced around the circular wood frame wall. After it was together (sort of), I had to place a canvas top over it and get the hole in the canvas to line up with the wooden smoke hole. I will admit that it was lop-sided when I finished, but I still had a good time. Give it a try sometime. The exhibit will be there through April 8th. http://www.gwinnettehc.org/

I found these two ger photos at http://www.bluepeak.net/

(c) BluePeak.net

 As I was leaving, I stopped at the front desk to thank them and to tell them that I was starting beekeeping as a result of that exhibit they'd had last year. The woman called out the Education Program Coordinator, Brian Sterne. Seems he's a beekeeper, and he has a top bar hive, which is precisely the kind I want to build over the summer. He gave me a lot of good advice on how to craft the top bars.

Beekeepers are very special people, ready to share their knowledge and to encourage newbies in the field.

BEEattitude for Day # 108:

       Blessed are the exhibit-makers, for the delight they bring shall filter back to them.  

One thing Fran is grateful for right now:

       Holtkamp Heating & A/C Inc., the sponsors of “Your House, My House” at GEHC.    

http://www.franstewart.com