Sun Went Down in Honey and the Moon Came Up in Wine

When I was a little kid, I had a tremendous fear of, actually, a lot of things. Among them were bees. I don't remember ever being actually stung, but if there was a bee near me, or if I heard a buzz, I ran inside. Wasps were worse.

Here, there are lots of bees of all types and they are often all over the flowers in the yard. Now we work in harmony. Turns out they are handy little bugs and somewhat friendly. You could almost pet them.

New Zealand is very protective of their bees and bee products. You cannot bring in honey from another country. They have detectors at the airports and harbors. You'd have less problems bringing in drugs.

We have talked about the honey before, but recently, we have discovered beeswax. Our buddy, Lance, the woodworking guy, puts it on all his stuff. We he brought over a small table the other day, it was slimy with wax made from a special formula. Then he rubs it off good and the result is beautiful finished wood. No commercial wood polish is needed.

Now, we treat all out wood furniture with beeswax which we get from Lance. He is our connection.

I spent a few hours yesterday waxing the outdoor furniture to make it ready for the intense summer sun. The tables and chairs were all dry and dull, but after waxing, they look like they did when we bought them. And when beeswax is warm, it goes on quite easily.

Well, Hanukkah is here and it is a real big deal in New Zealand. There are at least 10 Jews living in Nelson and all of them are atheists. We looked for the menorah, but then for some reason, did not light candles. We did not buy an, I guess. Perhaps the local stores were sold out.

But we had a turkey dinner and invited some friends over. They are not Jewish. We picked flowers from the yard and had a fine feast with Phil and Shirley. Phil is a full blooded Maori and

his wife is not. She is a nurse, and he is a house painter and golf buddy.

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We are getting ready for Christmas. There are lots more people who celebrate that here. Also, there is no War on Christmas here.

Perhaps because, Bill O'Stupid has very little impact, although we do get the Fox Channel.

The stores are decorated, but you need to look close to tell. There is no music blaring all over the place about Santa, Jesus, or Bethlehem. It is much more subtle.

But it is also summer and people are off on holiday vacations around the country. One of those hot vacation spots is right here in Nelson. We expect to see the population double in the coming months.

Parking will be a problem and the beaches will be packed. Just like Carlsbad on the fourth of July.

Cheers for now and Happy Holidays. Except Bill O'Reilly, who can choke on his fruitcake.