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Current Score: Bee 3 – James 5

Last Updated on August 30, 2010 by James Dziezynski

Currently, the score is vicious stinging bee 3, James 5. Here’s how I break it down:

Bee
(+1) – The bee gets a point for stealth tactics, stinging me immediately as I walked out my front door. This is second sting in the last two weeks I’ve gotten, so their secret nest must be nearby.

(+1) Quick sting tactic — never saw it coming.

(-1) Bee stung me in the middle of my left forearm. While painful, he could have planted his stinger in a more tender area such as an eyeball, lip or funny bone.

(+1) 24 hours later and the welt on my arm looks like I blocked a Randy-Johnson thrown mango. The current welt is 3.5 inches long, so the bee must have saved up some serious sting juice.

(+1) The bee is dead, which seems like it might be a minus but in the bee world, he’s a martyr. Maybe he will ascend to meet a gorgeous queen bee with 72 compound eyes or whatever bee-ish Elysian Fields await.

(-1) The poor dope thought I was a threat to his nectar, pollen or honey. I can buy honey in an adorable little bear-shaped container and truth be told, I’ve cut down on both  pollen and nectar in my diet. I think he was just looking for an excuse to sting.

Total Score = 3


James
(+1) For not screaming like a frightening school girl after getting stung. No infant-style pinwheeling of the arms in a manic state, just a calm handling of the situation.

(+1) Unlike the bee, I’m not dead. Yet.

(+1) Defeated the bee mid-sting by punching, not slapping the fiend to his death. Brilliant accuracy meant I didn’t push the detached stinger deeper into my skin. A simple pluck and both stinger and deceased bee lay wasted on the ground.

(+2) Took the bee sting instead of Fremont, who likely stirred up the nest.

(+1) Left behind bee corpse as a warning to other uppity bees.

(-1) Had to run arm under hottest possible water to draw histamines to skin surface so I could actually get any sleep.

Total: 5

Since this was round two, I think I’m still ahead on points but if the bees combine their forces I could be in a welty world of hurt. Stay tuned for more man vs. bee action!

James Dziezynski

James is a best-selling author and writer based out of Boulder, Colorado. His writings reflect his personal passions: adventure, science, exploration, philosophy, animal welfare and technology. When not spending time in the mountains, James volunteers at several animal rescue organizations and is a collector of classic video games.