The current score--

Bobcat - 10
Me - 0

Some of the sensitivity-challenged members of my family had named our remaining hen "Lucky". Well, she wasn't very lucky after all. That old bobcat made off with her in the broad daylight yesterday.

Right now, I am henless, roosterless, gooseless ... We've just shut up the whole hen house until the spring.

We finally felt that we had done enough research to actually have some level of competence to buy all of the beekeeping equipment we're going to need, including the hive.

Check out these guard bees (above) in this gorgeous Flickr photo by Max XX. From what I've read, if the bees feel really threatened, the guard bees will line up at the door of the hive and actually look at you. If you have a whole bunch of these guard bees looking at you, from what I gather, then you'd had better get out of there, pronto. Can you imagine that? Bees--looking at you. Who would have thought?

Just wait until I get my bees in the springtime, you old bobcat. How about 70,000 of these comin' at ya?

Think there's any chance I can train them to do my bidding? Mwah ha HA HA ha ha ha HA!

Well, R.I.P. er ... Lucky.