Watching Teenage Girls Fall in Love with Bees

Last Sunday, I took my 17 year old daughter and her friend out to the Honeylove bee Sanctuary to meet the bees up close and personal. It was, for me, the beginning of Shake the Hive Collective- which is the non-profit for teenage girls that I aim to start in 2014. It is geared to bridge the impulse of compassion into action- I see my kids and all their friends have that impulse naturally- they just don't know how to turn that impulse into action; they haven't been empowered to. STH Collective will have a headquarters where we will run a micro-farm, with bees and chickens. We will work with local non-profits and help them with hands on participation. We will have workshops and classes in food growing, beekeeping, sustainability and permaculture for the kids, their friends and family. And the kids will blog and have a facebook page devoted to their activities, so they can help instill the interest in permaculture and sustainability in their peers.

Zoe and Kaila at the Honeylove Bee Sanctuary

 So, now you can see why this was the start of Shake the Hive Collective- I have been doing a lot of work with my own blog, with the Shake the Hive facebook page, and meeting people in the non-profit world through volunteering, but to bring teenagers out to meet the bees for the first time...my own daughter at that- this was where the rubber finally met the road.

Watching Teenage Girls Fall in Love with Bees

My daughter has been violently afraid of bees her entire life. I give her big props for confronting her fears- and no one was more surprised than me when she said she would like to go. Driving out to Moorpark- which is farm country, about 30 miles from our house- she was nervous. Putting on her bee suit, she kept asking Ceebs from Honeylove if there was any way for a bee to sting her and making sure there were no gaps in her bees suit. Her perception of bees consisted of one main thing- they sting, and that hurts. 

Its kind of like wearing space suits...

After we donned our bee suits (Zoe said she felt like Walter White) we walked up the hill to the hives. She grabbed my arm.  The wonderfully warm Kirk and Rob McFarland (of the husband and wife team Rob and Chelsea McFarland, who started Honeylove) were busy working on cleaning out the hives. There were a handful of others, and as Zoe and Kaila walked up, they saw no one running or screaming from the bees, no one being stung, everyone calm and interested, and the fact that Kirk was holding up trays of honeycomb crawling with hundreds of bees barehanded immediately changed her perception about the intention of bees- they are NOT out to get us. 

Kirk is pointing out the different variations of bees in the hive

Watching my 17 year old child discover the bees was the first time in many years I saw her childlike innocence. She was having a new experience, and soaking it up like a sponge. Before too long, she was handling honeycombs crawling with bees (with gloves on), helping scrape the old beeswax off frames from dead trays of honeycomb, putting her face as close as she could into the hive boxes to see the bees busy with the broods and storage cells, and the die was cast. She was a lily. (If you don't know that quote, then you watch the clip below from the classic movie You Can't take It With You by Frank Capra).  She and her friend Kaila fell in love with the bees.

Its not hard to do, fall in love with the bees- you either get it or you don't. To be able to see their devotion to the task at hand, and to the hive and the queen is a humbling thing, and a reminder that this is a quality that is often missing in human affairs. It is the thing that is missing the presence of which would make a BIG difference. And THAT is exactly what Shake the Hive Collective will continue to ask the teenage participants- when we are growing food, when we work with bees, with chickens, with wolves (at Wolf Connection in Acton)- with any charitable endeavor- What is missing in life that you could bring, that is needed, that you can learn from the bees, the wolves, the act of growing things? It is empowering to interact with the graceful deliberation of the natural world, and to learn to live in accord with it. It is the thing that is missing that will make a difference to disenfranchised teens being raised by single moms. 

Zoe scraping the old beeswax off the frames

Then my daughter did what I hoped she would- she posted this on Facebook-  

"Today I volunteered my morning to helping the bees. Not only did I get over one of my biggest fears, but I got to observe them up close & personal. They are truly miraculous little beings, all they care about is their colony and their Queen (she lives up to 7 years while the average bee lives up to 4 weeks!). They do not care to harm us, which is something I learned first hand today. There was a man holding the honey combs with NO gloves on and he was fine! STOP killing bees, they're here to protect and serve, without them we wouldn't exist. If they go endangered we lose 80% of the organic crops we consume due to their inability to properly pollinate. Make peace with the bees! If I did it, you can too!"

She had a bunch of kids respond to this post who want to go to the next mentoring day at the Honeylove Bee Sanctuary, and that is exactly how Shake the Hive Collective aims to educate teens; by having the teens bring the information to their peer groups, get them interested, involved, educated. STH Collective will have workshops for the participants, and for their friends to attend, and for- and this is very important- their mothers. Then those kids will post on social media about their experiences, and so on. We need to reach this demographic, but they aren't going to listen to old people. They have the power to reach each other through social media; one kid can impact thousands. This is the pond where the ripple is endless.

My kid Zoe, holding a honeycomb crawling with her new friends

And what does it do for the self esteem of the kids who are having these experiences, like working with the bees, and posting about it? In that world, where teenage girls are devastated when their new sexy profile picture doesn't get more likes than someone they consider a rival, where it is highly competitive, often cruel, diminishes any real sense of value and chips away at a falsely derived self esteem- it allows for a new sense of self to emerge, a new identity. Other kids respond differently, they respect these activities and the teens who are actively doing them. These teens are getting respect instead of objectification. Teens respond to the way people perceive them as if they are that- so they carefully monitor what people think of them, and it ends up a terrible mess. I have seen teenage girls police their own image on social media, and study the profiles of other girls, critiquing and taking notes, approving or not. I've listened as they've done it, and there is no value in that world. It is all surface, and without an intervention, this is what they will take into the world. The world doesn't need more superficiality, especially when these kids have the capacity for so much more. These are the future stewards of the planet, and future parents of future stewards. To connect them to their own compassion, and to empower them to respond to the world from that place, is the dream of Shake the Hive. Its what I have been doing for most of 2013- empowering myself, recognizing my urge towards compassion and acting on it. Not allowing myself to talk myself out of it, staying on track, and trusting myself to do this work. I have to do it, if I am going to encourage others to- and not just the teens- but the Moms, who are usually in survival mode constantly, frantic with worry about their kids and in a constant state of feeling like they can't do it all, that in some way they are failing their children no matter how hard they try. I AM that mom, I understand this better than anyone. Shake the Hive wants to support those Moms along with their kids, like a beehive filled with female bees who all support the hive, who are devoted to the well being of the hive above all else, STH Collective will have a safe space for their compassionate instincts to unfold and grow strong. Join us at our facebook page- please like us, then hover over the liked button and click "show in notifications" so you will see our posts all the time!

Ashley Dane, Founder of Shake the hive and proud mom of Zoe!

Occupy yourself!

xoxo,

Ashley Dane

Shake the Hive

Sustainability and Urban Farming for the Homeless, March Against Monsanto, and Artisanal LA

Last Friday, I went to see my friend Chick at Step Up on Vine Street. Step Up is an organization that helps the homeless, and my friend works with them, runs groups and trainings, and maintains the tower gardens on the roof. As he was giving me a tour, I was stunned by how evolved the whole premise and the way it is structured to include urban farming and sustainability in its program.

The roof garden at Step Up on Vine street

Step Up on Second and Hollywood Community Housing Corporation, both 501(c)3 organizations, have retrofitted an existing 20,718 sf, three-story hotel into a 34-unit affordable housing project. The facility is intended for the psychosocial rehabilitation and support of the homeless affected by severe and persistent mental illness. 

Located at the corner of Santa Monica and Vine, the ground floor features retail and community spaces including a computer lab, cafe and commercial kitchen to be used by residents. The second and third floors consist of living quarters, a community room and laundry facilities. The roof of the structure features an aquaponic rooftop garden, outdoor seating and lighting that enables the space to be utilized by residents. 

Sustainable features include green screens on the exterior; daylighting strategies including low E windows and eyebrows that will extend past the green screen; low flow plumbing fixtures; use of a grey water/irrigation system; a potential 50 kW solar array on roof deck; thermal hot water system heated by solar; and new efficient electrical and mechanical systems. 

The cafe at Step Up on Vine Street- full commercial kitchen in back

 I got that blurb from the construction company website- because the Step Up website has the best information about the services they provide for the homeless- which are extensive and impressive- like the commercial kitchen and cafe where they train the residents to work. The cafe is open to the public and is manned by the people who have been trained to prepare the food and run the cafe. CLICK HERE to see more about what Step Up does.

Me at Step Up on Vine Street

For the purposes of this blog, I wanted to mention Step Up not only for their contribution to humanity, but for their efforts at sustainability.  I love that they are using solar panels- it was interesting to learn that the power drops on cloudy days. It makes sense, but I didn't know how that worked. I had gone there to help my friend plant the towers, but by the time I got there, he had planted them all- it was a super hot day, and once I got there I could see why he had wanted to hurry up.  They grow a lot of different vegetables and leafy greens which they use in the kitchen and cafeteria.  I love the tower gardens, and I have one myself, but I've had trouble getting the seedlings going this time around- from the weather scorching them, to me over watering them, to my cats eating them- its been a little challenging.  But once that part is done, the towers manage themselves, and do provide a great option for having a garden when you don't have soil to plant in.  (If you look up garden towers here in the STH blogs, you will see a lot more about them).

The March Against Monsanto, May 25, 2013

 Saturday is the March Against Monsanto. Things like this really separate the chaff from the wheat, when it comes to putting your money where your mouth is. Its easy to share a great activist-y meme or Down with Monsanto meme on facebook- its an entirely different thing to commit a chunk of your day to going to march. Originally I had a big group of people who wanted to go to the March- and its dwindled to my one homey, who I affectionately have called my Wife for many years. She and I are gonna go hit the streets on Saturday, and then we will be attending Artisanal LA, which will feature locally grown and artisan foods and products, as well as classes on beekeeping and creating community gardens and canning and fermenting....a bunch of cool stuff! If you are in LA, I would like to suggest you do your best to get to both. As for the March- I am sure you have stuff to do on Saturday. We all do. I am a mother, trust me, I know. But there is strength in numbers, and if people last minute decide they have to tend to other things, the march will be looked at as a sweet little attempt by a few earth loving hippies and not something to be taken seriously. WE NEED YOU! There is a March in almost very city in the US, and all over the world.

MARCH AGAINST MONSANTO!


CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO ABOUT THE MARCH AND WHERE TO GO IN YOUR CITY

Xoxo,

Ashley Dane

Shake the Hive!

Going on vacation!

I just wanted to say, I will be going on vacation until the 23rd. I hope to be updating while I am gone, but I can't predict that yet. I will be in Key West, splashing around in the Gulf of Mexico and thinking about what's next in my world, seeing that I am now unemployed.  I am so touched and moved and happy that there has been so much interest surrounding this blog- it has inspired me to take it to the next level, which I plan on doing when I get back. it will be more radical recipes, guerilla and urban gardening, beekeeping, and other sundry adventures in occupying one's self- and then some. You'll see. I'm talkin' Next Level stuff.

See you on the flip!

Xoxo

Ashley Dane

Urban Beekeeping- Visiting the Honeylove Bee Sanctuary

First day with the bees!

I spent the morning at the Honeylove Bee Sanctuary in Moorpark, which is basically California farmland that we Angelenos rarely ever see. I kind of love it out there. Its so wide open and rural and smells good- the older I get, the less I like the city.

It was especially intriguing to get to see the bees close up- you know how it is- we always see them fly by, usually we swat them away or, in some cases, run from them. Maybe we will get to watch one busy inside a flower for a minute- but to see them in their homes, up close is completely a different world.

All bees are female except the drones. Drones don't belong to any one hive, as the other honeybees do- they are loyal to their queen and their hive, but drones- the males, of which there are very few comparatively, can just up and leave the hive and be welcomed in at the next hive- they only need them to make more babies, they serve no other purpose than to mate with the queen.

It was neat to see the sacs where they store the pollen on their legs- I've never gotten close enough to see that, especially full of pollen.  I also didn't realize royal jelly is what they feed the queen- that is all she ever eats, and only the queen gets to eat it.

Their society is very ordered, each bee knows its job and its place, what to do and when to do it.

When the beekeeper Bill opened the hives, the smoke pacified the bees a little bit (they sense the smoke and the signal that they get is that a fire is near so to fill up on honey to take to the next hive that they will have to create- so they stick their heads into the combs and start eating honey, and that calms down a lot of them. The others spent a bit of time bashing into the beekeeper netting, or not paying any attention to us at all. But some were mad, and wanted to let us know it. I am glad they didn't sting me. They die after they sting you, their little intestines trailing out behind them like silk. I didn't want them to die from a misunderstanding- I wasn't there to hurt them.

I was kind of hoping that they would simply feel my bee love and that energy would be enough to create harmony, and docility on their part. I grew up on Disney as a child and did LSD as a teenager, so these flights of fancy happen from time to time. The reality is- bees are bees. They aren't there to love me or like me or even pay much attention to me- they've got shit to do! But I am fascinated with them, and that isn't going away any time soon.

Next- I need to learn how to catch feral swarms of bees! I can't wait.

Go check out the cool stuff Honeylove does- Honeylove website.

And here is a link to LA Weekly's Cover story this week about Urban Beekeeping in Los Angeles, featuring Rob and Chelsea who started Honeylove-LA Weekly Urban Beekeepers in LA article

 These folks spend a lot of time rescuing wild swarms and bringing them all the way out to Moorpark to introduce them to their new homes. These are really good and kind people doing something extraordinary!

The hives at Honeylove Bee Sanctuary

Who Is This Person?

Its not always easy to learn to do things differently.

On Sunday when I was walking through the farmer's market with my recycled bags chock full of green stuff  and fruit, I had one of those cool moments where you wonder, "Hey, who is this person???"   This is sooooo not me. And yet it feels exactly right. You have to understand, those of you who don't know me- up until about 6 weeks ago I nearly refused to eat fruit or vegetables and never drank water. (To be perfectly honest, I haven't tackled the water issue yet, so I am just blowing the whistle on myself right this instant). My epiphany to change my whole lifestyle around food is in a previous blog, but I do want to re-iterate- this isn't a 'get healthy' regime. This is a revolutionary stance.

Every time I eat something from the farmer's market, something locally grown, it is the biggest statement I can make- it is a pure 'f*ck you' to the major food corporations that seek to dominate the world food supply, tainted as it is with their genetically modified organisms.

Let me paint a brief but all to possible scenario. Monsanto and the other 'bad guys' dominate the world food supply. The bees, which are now dying in alarming numbers, all but die out, leaving the world to rely on Genetically Modified Foods, and their patented 'Super Bee'. Human who ingest this so called food- more like a food product- suffer from weakened immune systems- they get sick often, they are weaker, they are born with birth defects, their organs are deformed like the lab rats who have been fed GMO diets, they run greater and greater risk of cancer- and the humans, they work hard to PAY for this food that makes them sick. Then they work hard and pay for the healthcare, which, by the way, is also another corporate domination. Entire lives are lived working to buy food that causes one to work harder to buy medicine and healthcare. This is a watered down version of the Matrix- plugged into the cannibalizing dream machine. The very people who are in danger are mollified by social media, even giving all the details of their private lives- to the dreaded machine. And here is what it will look like, if people don't wake up- a future in which the only truly healthy people are the rich, who can afford to eat naturally grown foods.

I want to be very clear- I am not a conspiracy theorist. Not by a long shot. But when the ship is taking on water, you have to understand the next most likely scenario in order to act appropriately.

For me, that means a re-invention of my attitudes and habits around nearly everything- but I am starting with food. On Friday I got my first seedlings for the Living Garden Tower project- a tower made for the growing of gardens even in urban areas where soil and land to grow food is scarce.

 

Today I planted the seedlings in the Living Garden Towers.

 

I am starting with just one tower while I get the hang of it. I am not even sure what all I planted- tomatoes, zucchini, kale, some other cool edible stuff. And you know what? Doing all of this feels...sexy. It sounds counterintuitive, but I guess when you get into a cool groove that feels like you are doing good, it just feels amazing. Way better than being an unconscious consumer- like me chowing down on some giant ribs and a bucket of coke at a rib joint in Texas, below. Now don't get me wrong- that was some good eatin', but those days are over.

 

 

This Sunday I will begin my first day of beekeeping mentoring. More to come!