Bowling, Bees and Boardwalks

The last few days have been awesome. I have yet to do any significant amounts of school work this week, which I am sure will bite me in the ass really soon but for the first time in probably ever, I was actually loving the weather here on PEI. I would have never ever before this year said that spring was my favorite season, but this week is making me have a change of heart. It's been sunny and warm and there haven't even been any winds of death like usual. The board walk in Victoria Park has been packed with dog walkers, power walkers, lovers strolling hand in hand and fellow runners every time I'm there. Although I miss Florida (specially today since it's yak for a stak!), I realized today while walking outside in 12 degree, sunny weather, that missing spring for the last 6 years has actually kind of sucked. By the time we normally get back from our month in Florida, we don't appreciate the spring days because it still feels extremely cold compared to the Florida heat. What a shame I've been missing out for so long!
On Thursday night, the FANS (family and nutritional Sciences Department) all went out glow in the dark bowling. It was so much fun! Michelle and I have decided to join a bowling league next year, and I think I am going to hold her to it because I love bowling apparently. I hadn't been 5 pin bowling since my grade six graduation trip to the sketchy blowing alley in the basement of the beer store with Mr Bain and the other Whiteoaks Public School graduates. As many of you know, I can be a tad spastic at times, which is why I am normally the worst 10 pin bowler of life, but for some reason I kind of rocked at 5 pin. Maybe that's why I liked it so much. Since it was glow in the dark, the third years (all 6 of us who went) decided we should deck ourselves out in glow in the dark attire so one of the girls brought wigs that had white tips that showed up great in the dark. Needless to say we had a hoot and will be going again in the near future.
I am fairly confident that if it weren't for our mouse issue, this blog would have about half of it's current followers. Since we spotted Mousey the other night, we have set a trap filled with peanut butter and put it in the cupboard, which is the same way we caught the other mice. This one, however, seems to be a little too clever for us. There have been no more sightings, but 2 traps (he escaped with the peanut butter once) and a box of pancake mix later, Mousey is still roaming free. After having been offered to borrow a cat about 12 times now, Age had the brilliant idea to train Earl as our very own mouser. She even drew up a quick sketch of what he could look like with a bit of hard training:
Full props to Adrienne for the geniusity. Mousey won't know what hit him.

In other exciting news, the spring weather means that the bees are buzzin! My dad harvested two big jars of honey this weekend which I am beyond pumped to taste! I won't be home until July but Alex is going to bring me some back when she road trips home in April. Speaking of bees, I can't help but notice nad read every single article I come across related to bees. In the Globe and Mail, there was recently an article exclamation the fantastic news that New York City has officially (and FINALLY!) made beekeeping legal! Its interesting to read about the specific challenges they face in NYC in term of beekeeping-since most beehives are kept on rooftops, it's important that the bees have a clear line of flight, and that this path doesn't intersect with any neighbor's doorways or open windows. I love how dynamic apiculture is, I think that's one of the reasons I find it so incredibly cool. I am hoping to use some of my spare time in July at home to learn more about the bees-it's basically my dad who does everything but hopefully by the end of the summer I'll have interned both with dietitians and with Poppa P's Bees Inc. That's not actually the name-we don't have one yet-but suggestions are welcome!

For all of you interested in saving the world, check out Bees Without Borders! I stumbled across the site today and think it's awesome. I am already a HUGE fan of food and agriculture, so personally I think that teaching poor individuals and families a sustainable way to earn an income is awesome. Plus it's environmentally friendly, teaches skills that can be passed down for generations, and with colony collapse disorder affecting apiaries world wide, a few more bees couldn't hurt!
Not to mention wild animals attacking the entrance to their hives (as illustrated above)